


A Gambler and an Architect Walk Into a Bar...

by dweetwise



Category: Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Normal Life, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Amnesia, Anal Fingering, Angst, Body Swap, Boys Kissing, Break Up, Canon-Typical Violence, Coming Out, Domestic Fluff, Drinking, Established Relationship, First Meetings, Fluff, Hanahaki Disease, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, October Prompt Challenge, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Praise Kink, Pranks and Practical Jokes, Rimming, Secret Relationship, Selfcest, Semi-Public Sex, Sexual Content, Suit Kink, Swearing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, merman au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:08:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 31
Words: 51,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26774143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dweetwise/pseuds/dweetwise
Summary: 31 days of Felix/Ace one shots from various October prompt challenges (Kinktober, Whumptober, Cocktober and Flufftober).Ratings change from G to E depending on the chapter, please read the author notes for rating and warnings!
Relationships: Felix Richter/Ace Visconti
Comments: 11
Kudos: 89





	1. Day 1: Ouija Board

**Author's Note:**

> prompt from cocktober, rated G and no warnings!

”Honey, you’re not seriously doing this?” Ace asks, quirking an amused eyebrow as Felix, for some crazy reason, gets up to join the girls in their dumb little game.

“Why not?” Felix shrugs. “I’m curious to see who answers.”

“Wait wait wait,” Ace realizes. “You actually _believe_ in that kind of crap?”

He eyes the worn, pathetic board that looks like something you’d buy right alongside other overprized spiritual crap like healing crystals and tarot cards. There’s a mismatch of symbols printed on the board’s edges, like someone was trying to shove all supernatural elements they could think of on it; there’s a few sigils, what looks to be Latin inscriptions, and even the Chinese zodiac.

All in all, it looks like a child’s game and not the paranormal relic the girls insist it is.

“Um, Ace,” Zarina starts, clearing her throat. “Are you saying you _don’t_ believe in the paranormal? After everything we’ve been through?”

“Nothing weird about a demonic spider-god and being resurrected every other day, no sir,” Meg snarks.

“I didn’t say _that,_ ” Ace scoffs. “Just that there’s no such thing as ghosts. All that psychic powers, lingering spirits shit? A massive con—I should know.”

“I still think we should give it a shot,” Felix says, and Ace resists the urge to roll his eyes. He knows Felix is a little lacking in the street smarts department, having spent most of his life tucked away in comfortable luxury, but this is the first time Ace has seen him completely disregard common sense.

“Yeah, I didn’t go through the trouble of stealing it for nothing!” Nea insists, puffing up her chest and expecting even more cheers for having managed to nick the item from the Legion’s hideout.

“I think we’ll definitely get an answer. We know there have been survivors before us,” Zarina tries to rationalize as much as the idea of ghosts _can_ be rationalized.

“Knock yourselves out,” Ace dismisses with a wave of his hand, lounging back against the log and preparing to watch the group make complete fools of themselves.

“Alright, let’s do this!” Meg announces when all of the four take their places on each side of the board and place their fingers on the wooden marker. “Who’s gonna ask the questions?”

“I think Zarina should do it!” Nea says. “I’d probably just piss the ghost off.”

“Alright,” Zarina says, taking a deep breath. And then, someone starts frantically moving the marker around.

“Wow, looks like a really angry ghost is possessing Meg’s hand,” Ace smirks.

“We’re warming up the board, dumbass,” Meg shoots back.

Jesus H Christ, Ace didn’t know there was a protocol to this kind of thing. It just makes it even more ridiculous.

“I think we’re ready,” Felix says, and everyone stops the marker.

“Are there any spirits present?” Zarina asks, and the way she stares at the board with a dead serious expression is almost enough for Ace to lose it.

The pointer, predictably, is still, until someone decides to slowly move it to “Yes”.

“It’s working!” Meg exclaims. “Come on, do another one!”

“Are… were you a survivor?” Zarina asks, hesitating a little bit.

Ace really wants someone to move the marker to the rooster zodiac symbol in the background so he can make a cock joke.

He’s out of luck, because the marker only spins in a slow circle, until someone pushes it to “No”.

“You…” Zarina starts, much more meekly than before. “Were you a killer?”

Someone yanks the pointer immediately to “Yes”.

“Shit,” Nea curses, eyes going wide.

“What do I do?” Zarina hisses to the group.

“Ask if—” Felix starts, but then quiets as the marker starts moving.

“L… E… T… M…” Meg’s eyes fly over the board as the marker moves. “E... O—” she gasps as it makes its way to the final two letters.

“’Let me out’,” Felix murmurs, and there’s a genuine fear in his expression that makes Ace do a double take. He’s really buying into this stuff, huh?

“We can’t do that,” Zarina addresses the board, having somewhat collected herself. She looks like she’s about to say more, but almost loses her grip on the pointer when it zips to “Yes”.

“Oh fuck,” Nea curses. Ace doesn’t think he’s ever seen the headstrong tagger look genuinely scared before, not since first arriving in the realm. Which one of them is controlling the marker?

“Ask what it’s after,” Felix urges Zarina.

“What do you want?” Zarina asks, her voice trembling just the tiniest bit. Shit, even the Ice Queen is scared? Meg is doing a fantastic job pulling the strings.

The marker goes crazy, frantically moving between letters, seeming to repeat a pattern that spells—

“’Kill’,” Meg gasps, retreating her hand as if burned, and it _just keeps moving,_ almost like it’s possessed, and damnit, that means it’s not her doing it—

“Meg come on, we need all of us to bind it!” Nea says, and they’re all seeming to struggle with getting the marker under control, like it has a mind of its own.

“Quick, ask it something!” Felix says, an urgency in his voice as he addresses Zarina. Suddenly, Ace doesn’t want to know what happens if the marker manages to get free from their grasp.

“Who? Who do you want to kill?” Zarina nearly shouts, pressing down on the rogue game piece with both hands to get it under control.

Nea’s finger slips when the pointer flies across the board, landing on A and then moving to C—

Ace’s eyes go wide when he sees the violent spirit spell out his name on the board, his heartbeat suddenly thundering in his ears and no longer feeling safe at all, despite the familiar glow of the campfire and being surrounded by his companions.

And then it gets so much worse when Felix turns to look at him and his face blanches in fear, and Meg is doing the same, looking behind him and yelling out a warning—

_“Ace!”_

Cold hands emerge from the shadows and grab at him before he can turn around, and Ace shrieks and scrambles away, not about to let the ghost drag him to the void—

And then the ghost starts laughing in a very familiar manner and his companions are quick to join in, and Ace’s adrenaline-fueled brain finally allows him to turn to face his attacker and realize the fluffy-haired ghost looks awfully familiar.

“ _Steve,_ ” Ace addresses the teen through gritted teeth.

“Oh man, you screamed like a girl!” Steve cackles, actually doubling over in laughter.

“I told you it’d work!” Nea snickers, elbowing Felix.

“Wait, you _planned_ this!?” Ace screeches, turning to face his lover in accusation.

“Maybe,” Felix smirks like the infuriating bastard that he is.

“Remember the time you scammed me out of my skeleton keys?” Zarina asks with a sickly sweet smile.

“Or when you got that chest and let me die on hook?” Steve adds, still chuckling.

“Wait, you were _all_ in on it?” Ace realizes.

“Payback’s a bitch!” Meg sing-songs, and Ace can’t help but be impressed at their coordination. It was a perfectly executed prank, and he can’t believe Felix managed to fool him so completely.

“ _You,_ ” Ace demands, an accusing finger pointing at his lover. “You’d better make this up to me.”

“Of course, darling,” Felix smirks, and Ace resigns himself to his fate of seeing that smug little smile for at least the next couple of days. Felix walks up to him and places a cute kiss into his hairline, and Ace is maybe, _maybe_ prepared to forgive him.

“I’ll protect you from the scary ghost,” Felix murmurs and when Ace snaps his head back to gape at him in offense, Felix has the audacity to _laugh_.

Since when has his boyfriend been such a little _demon?_


	2. Day 2: Haunted Mansion (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt from cocktober, rated M for sexual content. sequel to day 1!

Felix wordlessly follows Ace through the forest surrounding the campfire, trusting him to know where they’re going and adoring the way the warm hand tugs on his own when the gambler deems him too slow.

“Come on, almost there!” Ace calls over his shoulder, a mischievous grin on his face. Felix obediently picks up the pace, curious to see what his boyfriend has in mind.

And then he spots the looming structure in the distance.

“ _There?_ ” Felix hisses, stopping dead in his tracks to stare at the familiar sight of the Yamaoka estate.

“Why not?” Ace tilts his head. “It’s homey! …Kind of.”

“There’s an angry mutilated corpse occupying it!” Felix points out, not eager to run across the scary killer with a katana.

“It’s not like the killers just hang around in their realms,” Ace explains, and Felix can’t really argue, since Ace has been here for much longer than him. “And she’s the Entity’s favorite. You know we face her trial after trial.”

Felix can’t fault that logic. They have been facing the Spirit a lot more than usual, especially after some of the other killers had seemed to weaken.

“Tell you what; we’ll check if she’s home, and if she is, we bail,” Ace offers.

“And if she’s not?” Felix asks, expecting another one of Ace’s stupid and reckless ideas.

“You fuck me against the shrine in the living room!” Ace beams and Felix can’t help but huff out a laugh at his lover’s predictability.

“That sounds unnecessarily risky,” he points out.

“Come on baby, live a little,” Ace purrs, wrapping his arms around his neck and giving him a _look_ that unravels the last of Felix’s willpower. “Or do I need to remind you that you owe me from earlier?”

Ah, the Ouija board prank. Felix should have known that Ace would keep bugging him about it, but it still makes him smile in self-satisfaction.

“You little shit,” Ace chastises, though his own grin betrays his real sentiment. “You’re way too smug about that.”

“Always fun to watch you squirm,” Felix says warmly, and it ends up as a deeper rumble than he intended, lust starting to cloud his judgement. Suddenly, trespassing on haunted ground doesn’t seem like such a big deal anymore. “Are we going, or what?”

“Right this way!” Ace’s eagerness masks some of his surprise, and then he’s leading Felix closer to the house. Felix is no longer looking at the unwelcoming building and considering its dangers, but rather staring at Ace’s ass when he skips the last steps of the stairs.

Yup, this man will definitely be the death of him.

They enter the mansion and navigate through the rooms, thankfully without hearing any eerie hissing or moaning from the estate’s guardian. Ace seems to find what he’s looking for, and Felix barely has the time to notice a small shrine that looks to be to someone’s ancestors, a bad gut feeling hitting him for a second before he’s effectively distracted.

A warm pair of lips crash against his own and a dexterous hand snakes its way into his pants, grabbing at his half-chub and shutting up the tiny voice in his head that tries to tell him that this is a terrible idea.

The fear of getting caught morphs into _excitement_ at the possibility of getting caught as he shoves a tongue down his lover’s throat and starts undressing him, flinging Ace’s jacket somewhere across the room before moving to unbutton his shirt.

“Leave it,” Ace breathes against his lips, impatient hands grabbing his and pulling them down to work at his pants while he’s already made quick work of Felix’s belt.

The sense of urgency makes a shiver shoot up Felix’s spine, the thrill of the situation turning him on further. Quick, dirty and forbidden isn’t something he thought he’d enjoy, but Ace is proving him very, _very_ wrong.

Ace’s slacks slide down and Felix can’t resist groping at his lover’s ass when he tugs the underwear down after them. Ace offers a filthy groan into the kiss that makes Felix’s head swim, giving the flesh a firm _slap,_ and Ace squeezes his dick in retaliation, already having fished it out from behind underwear and suit pants.

Now the voice in his head is screaming something else, and Felix regains just enough of his wits to make it out as ‘lube, you idiot!’.

“Where’s the—” Felix starts, not recognizing the roughness in his own voice.

“Jacket pocket,” Ace answers just as breathlessly, and Felix curses softly and steps away, frantically looking around the room for the discarded piece of clothing.

There! He stumbles over his feet as he wobbles over to a corner where the jacket is laying in an inelegant pile, not used to walking around with his cock jutting out for the world to see. His hands are shaking with impatience as he rifles through the pockets, before finally grasping a familiar vial.

He turns around, eager to rejoin his lover, approving eyes roaming over Ace’s exposed bottom half—

And then his erection dies and his heart leaps into his throat from worry.

“Behind you!” he yells, spotting the Spirit before Ace does, slowly materializing behind him and looking downright _pissed_ –

“Like I’m falling for that again,” Ace scoffs, not turning around, and a sword is appearing in the killer’s hand when she swings her arm back to strike—

Fear fuels Felix’s body into action, throwing himself at Ace and tackling him to the ground, the man’s surprised “Oof!” immediately followed by the _swish_ of a katana swinging over their heads and hitting thin air.

For a split second everything is silent, Ace’s eyes widening when he spots the killer, and the killer staring right at them, tangled together on the floor—

“ _WAAAAHHH!_ ” the Spirit wails, her eyes blazing with fury, and the next few seconds are a blur when Felix and Ace scramble to their feet and take off in a sprint.

Felix didn’t think he’d ever be running from a killer with his cock out, but if there’s one thing Ace seems to be an expert at it’s proving him wrong.


	3. Day 3: Body Swap (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt for cocktober, rated M for sexual content, warning for selfcest themes!

“Well. This is awkward,” Ace watches himself say, scratching at his arm in a very Felix-like manner.

“This is the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” Ace counters with a shit-eating grin.

The Entity had apparently messed up their resurrection after the previous trial, and him and Felix had ended up in each other’s bodies. After a small bit of panicking, exclusively from Felix, they’d been reassured by Meg that it’d go away after their next death, as the same thing had happened to her and Claudette some time ago.

The obvious difference being that Meg and Claudette weren’t fucking.

Ace smugly looks down at his well-defined, suit-covered body. There’s already a bulge forming in his pants from anticipation, and he shamelessly goes to grab at it—

And a hand, his hand, flies out to stop him.

“Are you _crazy!?_ ” Felix, or rather, Felix in his body, hisses. “You can’t just… do that!”

“Why not?” Ace cocks his head. “It’s not like I haven’t seen it before,” he purrs seductively, and gets to see his own face twist into a disgusted expression when Felix essentially experiences getting propositioned by himself.

“This is fucked up,” Felix says, but Ace knows all the tells of his own body, from the flush creeping up his neck to the rapidly quickening breathing.

“So you’re on board?” Ace grins, already knowing the answer.

“I…” Felix hesitates. “I’m probably going to regret this, but fuck it,” he curses, mostly to himself, before pulling Ace closer by the collar of his own shirt and going in for a rough kiss.

It’s pretty weird to be kissing himself, but Ace is just the right amount of a narcissist to get off on it. He lets Felix control the kiss, hoping the familiarity of being in charge will soothe some of his nerves, while roaming his hands all over his own body.

Only when he squeezes at his ass does he get a muffled yelp in reaction.

“You’re a sick, sick man,” Felix mumbles against his lips.

“Is this a bad time to point out that you’re hard as a rock, cutie pie?” Ace smirks, pulling away from the kiss to nibble at his neck.

“Don’t…” Felix huffs in offense. “Don’t flatter yourself.”

Ace snorts at the pun. So maybe he _should_ lay off the nicknames as long as they’re stuck like this, but on the other hand, it seems to annoy Felix, and he does so love pushing his buttons.

“So, now for the most important question,” Ace starts, pausing to bite at his neck and palm at his cock through his shorts, and Jesus, Felix was right, he _does_ sound like a slut when he moans—

“What,” Felix tries to growl but it ends up as more of a groan.

“Do you want to fuck yourself, or be fucked by yourself?” Ace asks, not able to resist the smirk when Felix seems to mull over the options through the lust clouding his judgement.

It’s taking so long Ace is fully prepared for Felix to say “neither” and go back to sulking, but then he gets to experience his own “fuck me” eyes used on himself.

“Both,” Felix says, and it’s disturbing how the breathless confession is enough to make his dick twitch. “And… can you blow me too?”

Well, Ace thinks when he immediately gets down on his knees and starts unbuckling the familiar belt, looks like he’s not the only kinky bastard wanting to make the most out of their predicament.


	4. Day 4: Watching a horror movie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another prompt for cocktober, with a hint of ptsd but mostly fluff! rated T <3

“You can’t be serious,” Felix says, eyeing the DVD cover skeptically. 

There’s so many things wrong with this situation; one, how the hell did Ace even manage to find a place that rents out physical copies of movies? And a DVD, nonetheless? Two, it’s a trashy horror movie, complete with a cover picture of a generic masked killer and a screaming, half-naked girl. Three, it’s a _goddamn horror movie_ , the last genre he thought he’d ever watch after escaping the Entity’s realm.

And four, how ridiculously happy Ace looks showing off his chosen film.

“Why not? It’ll be fun!” Ace smiles in excitement and Felix is acutely reminded of how many times that same damn smile has gotten them both into trouble.

“A horror movie,” Felix deadpans.

“It’s Halloween season,” Ace shrugs.

“That’s not what I—”

“I know what you meant,” Ace interrupts, a comforting hand on his arm. “That’s why I picked out a really bad one. It’s not scary so I thought we could give it a shot.”

So maybe Felix has been avoiding violent media ever since their escape. He doesn’t know how he’s going to react, and he’s just been pushing it further and further.

And now, it seems like Ace is taking matters into his own hands.

“Alright,” Felix agrees, and the warm smile he gets in return makes his heart skip a beat even after all this time. “But if either of us gets uncomfortable _at all_ —”

“We stop right away, of course,” Ace agrees, placing a quick peck on his cheek. “I’m going to make some popcorn, sit tight!”

Half an hour later, Felix has a bowl of slightly burnt popcorn in his lap and a constantly commentating boyfriend in his arms.

The token promiscuous girl in the movie has already been the victim of the murderer’s weapon of choice, an ice pick (Felix can’t help but wonder if Ace consciously chose something without chainsaws or machetes), after a short chase sequence that showed more breast than Felix has seen in years.

And maybe he focuses on that particular piece of anatomy more than the actual kill, having a small sexuality crisis in trying to decide if he was ever actually into women or if it was just another lie in his fake life.

“I don’t think it’s fair that the slut always dies first,” Ace prattles on, munching on some popcorn. “Let the kid have some fun, geez.”

“If you’re doing a strip tease on someone’s grave, I think it’s only fair that the occupant gets to murder you,” Felix banters along, trying to ignore the numerous plot holes of the scene in question.

“Oh, like we haven’t done worse,” Ace smirks. Felix can’t argue, not after all the creative ways they found to be intimate in the Entity’s realm. He remembers vandalizing shrines and killer hangouts alike with some questionable graffiti, mostly consisting of white splatters of an unknown substance.

Felix clears his throat and redirects his attention to the movie, discreetly trying to adjust his suddenly tightening pants under the popcorn bowl.

Luckily the next scene in the movie is a complete mood killer, as the nerdy boy of the group gets chased through an empty school while dressed in a silly mascot costume.

“Are you sure this isn’t a parody?” Felix asks when the rooster mascot trips over his feet for the fifth time in a row.

“I told you it was bad!” Ace grins.

Felix watches as the murderer finally catches up to the teen, and proceeds to… behead him. With one quick swoop of an ice pick.

“The realism is impeccable,” Felix deadpans when the shot switches to a closeup of the mascot’s head falling to the floor and blood pouring out from it.

“That’s one way to perform a circumcision,” Ace smirks, and then looks up at him expectantly. Felix doesn’t get the joke, but he’s not about to ask for an explanation, instead frowning and wracking his brain. He looks back to the screen, still showing the decapitated rooster—oh.

He sighs long and loud in exasperation and Ace chuckles, pleased at his own joke.

“You’re terrible,” Felix chastises fondly.

“But you love me,” Ace shoots back, tilting his head up for a chaste kiss.

“I do,” Felix murmurs against soft lips, pulling his infuriating boyfriend closer against him.

It doesn’t matter that the rest of the movie is somehow even more terrible than the beginning, or that the popcorn is burnt, or that Felix’s leg falls asleep after Ace practically crawls into his lap. What matters is that they’re free and can make dumb jokes while watching dumb movies together, and there’s not a single thing Felix would change.


	5. Day 5: Where do you think you're going?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt for whumptober, so the angst is a given! canon-typical violence, rated T!

It was supposed to be an easy escape.

The Trapper had been too focused on protecting one side of the map, letting them complete three generators without interference. After that, it was only a matter of using his own game against him, Meg running him around one of the guarded generators long enough for Ace and Felix to finish another one and Nea to sneak past the killer to start on the last one.

After Meg got hooked, Ace got the killer’s attention so Nea could keep working and Felix could go for the rescue. Ace ran him to a corner of the map, avoiding tall grass that were obvious trap spots, and from the way the Trapper grunted in annoyance every time he sidestepped a pallet or choke point, Ace was getting under his skin.

When the last generator got done and adrenaline rushed through Ace, allowing him to sprint to the other side of the map, the Trapper was fuming. He followed Ace all the way across the trial grounds, to the opposite side of any exit gates, determined to teach him a lesson.

When Ace got slapped with a particularly brutal hit, sending him tumbling to the ground from full health, he wasn’t surprised in the slightest. The killer was one of the most notorious one for bringing the powerful perk into the trials.

But then he heard the thundering boom of a hex totem being cleansed, and he could have been imagining it, but he thought he heard the killer curse when picking him up.

Now hanging from a hook with a very pissed off killer setting three different traps under his feet, Ace watched as the familiar faces of his teammates appeared from behind various structures. The killer noticed them too, but wasn’t budging, determined to camp the hook and get one kill.

But that wasn’t nearly good enough for a coordinated team like them.

Nea started disarming a trap, allowing Meg to walk over it—a technique they’d recently discovered—and go for the unhook.

The Trapper swung at the sprinter, who immediately let go, allowing Felix to come in from the side of the hook.

Somehow, despite not being in the realm for more than what had to be a few short months, Felix had adapted quickly and wasn’t afraid to use his skills to help the team. And now, that resourcefulness was used for Ace’s benefit, Felix pulling him off the hook quicker than any of the others could even after years of practice, and Ace felt the endurance from one of Bill’s teachings kick in as soon as his feet hit the ground.

And not a second too soon; the Trapper took a wild swing in his direction, but it only served to give Ace more of an incentive to run, the pain making his legs kick into motion and sprint across the map. He saw Meg and Nea motioning in front of him, guiding him to an exit, with Felix trailing somewhere behind him, ready to tank a hit for him if needed.

The heartbeat was getting louder but as the exit was now in sight, Ace couldn’t help a smirk spreading over his face. They’d all make it out and the killer couldn’t do anything about it; Ace still had a glass shard from Laurie, allowing him to escape the killer’s grasp even if he were somehow to go down. As long as Meg didn’t suffer another injury, they’d all be fine.

The gate slid open before them, Meg pulling down the lever while Nea had already started taunting the killer. Almost there—

Ace braved a look behind him and saw that the killer was no longer coming for him.

Meg realized it too, but it was too late, the killer walking past Ace and Felix and lunging at her, outpositioned by the lever—

Ace threw himself into the swing without a second thought.

“ _Shit!_ ” Nea’s curse was an accurate representation of how he felt when he faceplanted into the ground from the pain, letting out a distressed scream.

“Ace—” Meg’s eyes were panicked where she hovered indecisively in front of him.

“I’m fine, go!” he called through gritted teeth, flashing the glass shard in his hand as he started crawling. Only a couple of feet left—

Ace heard Felix scream above him and warm blood spurted onto his face, his boyfriend standing over him protectively to stop the killer form getting to him.

“Felix, _go!_ ” Ace demanded, now scared for his lover who still wouldn’t budge from his position, glaring daggers at the Trapper.

Nea, thankfully having more situational awareness, yanked on Felix’s arm just enough to make him stumble away and the killer’s next swing to miss.

“Let me go!” Felix tried to struggle against the tagger’s grip, but the girl forcefully pulled him out of the trial, Meg following right behind them.

Ace kept crawling, already tasting the relative freedom that was the safety of behind the exit gate, he was almost there—

And then a heavy boot landed on his back, knocking the air out of him and stopping him in his tracks.

“Where do you think you’re going, worm?” the Trapper’s voice snarled ominously, and Ace’s eyes widened in realization.

The mori. He’d forgotten about the mori.

He screamed as the Trapper extracted his revenge, the slashes against his back feeling even more brutal than usual.

Just before he blacked out from the treatment, he could make out Felix’s face, screaming into the void around the trial grounds, tears streaming down his usually collected features.

And having that heartbreaking sight ingrained in his memory was more of a punishment than anything the killers could ever hope to achieve.


	6. Day 6: Myths

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt for cocktober, tho i kinda missed the mark. i still like it and hopefully you will too! warning for mentioned drowning, rated T!

Ace is walking back to his hotel in the small hours of the morning, stumbling a little bit from having had one too many drinks over the course of the night. His pockets feel much emptier than before he hit the casino, but he tries not to let it bother him too much; surely, his luck will turn back around for this evening.

The sun is already starting to rise but the beach remains empty, the sun worshippers either safely tucked in their hotel beds or out partying in the nightlife that never seems to quiet down.

A glimmer in the corner of his eye catches Ace's attention, and he sees a man emerging from the stillness of the ocean.

The sun peeking over the horizon casts a golden glow to the man's smooth skin, and Ace watches, enraptured, as he runs a hand through his equally golden hair to smooth the wet locks out of his face.

And holy shit, what a face that is.

Ace engages in a split-second internal fight in what he thinks is his rational side trying once again to curb his impulsiveness.

Fuck it, he's going for a swim.

He approaches the man who doesn't seem to notice him, opting instead to observe the sunrise.

“Out for a morning swim, huh?” Ace asks when he's within earshot, the man flinching in surprise and turning around to face him.

God, that jawline is to die for, and his _body_ —

“Mind if I join you?” he adds, quickly snapping his eyes back to the man’s face.

The handsome stranger regards him silently, and Ace tries not to fidget under the scrutiny.

“Be my guest,” the man says, and holy shit, even his voice is perfect, like silk caressing Ace's ears.

For some reason, despite the liquid courage still buzzing through his veins, Ace feels nervous when he starts removing his clothes. So he resorts to what he does best; run his mouth until something sticks.

“How's the water today?” he asks while shrugging out of his shirt, pretending like he swims even somewhat regularly.

“It's pleasant,” the man hums. “Not too warm, even on the surface.”

Ace thinks that's kind of a weird way to describe the temperature, not knowing anyone who would consider ocean water too warm under any circumstances. But he shoves the thought back, not wanting to be rude.

“Not sure you picked the right place to vacation, if oppressing heat isn’t your thing,” he jokes as he slides his pants down, idly wondering why anyone would visit the sunny beach destination if not to enjoy the climate.

“My family lives here,” the man says, and Ace didn’t expect an explanation but he’s happy the hottie seems content to go along with his small talk nonetheless.

“Ah, the age old answer to why we obediently keep doing shit we hate,” Ace jokes, and it might be too far, maybe the man is one of the few lucky souls who actually has a good relationship with his relatives.

Fortunately he doesn’t seem phased, giving a small one-shoulder shrug and letting Ace focus back on undressing himself.

And then he immediately runs into a problem; his boxers. On one hand, he's far from self-conscious and would rather go skinny dipping than soak the clothing and make the walk back to his hotel uncomfortable. But on the other, he doesn't want to freak out his companion, even though he thinks his intentions are pretty obvious at this point.

He leaves the garment on and takes the first step into the ocean.

And promptly hisses from the sting of cold shooting up his foot. Damn, “not warm” was an understatement!

If it wasn't for the gorgeous man watching him with a challenging little smirk, Ace would nope out of the water real quick and go back to his room to warm up with some whiskey from the mini bar.

But alas, dick prevails over brain, even as said dick isn't a fan of the shift in temperature and starts shriveling up as soon as the water comes up to his knees. In retrospect, the boxers were a great idea.

“How is the water?” the man echoes his earlier question, gauging his reaction and probably seeing right through him.

“It's v-very… refreshing!” Ace manages without his teeth clattering too much, his breath hitching when the water laps at his belly.

Goddamnit, the things he will do to get laid.

When he's finally, _finally_ neck-deep and does a few experimental swim strokes, trying to see if he's going to die from hypothermia or not, his companion smiles in approval.

“Stubborn,” the man offers, and Ace can't help but bark out a laugh.

“You don't know the half of it.”

They swim in silence for a little while as Ace tries to get his body temperature up and his thoughts in order.

“Any particular reason for the swim?” Ace finally manages.

“Hmm,” the man hums in thought, and the simple sound is almost a melody of its own. “Just trying to clear my head.”

There are so many things that are clearly off with this dude, but Ace doesn't care. Besides, isn't _he_ the weird one, seeing a random guy swimming in the middle of the night and deciding to _join_ him?

…Not to mention flirt with him.

“I assume from questions like ‘am I too beautiful for this world’?” he says, and it's definitely not one of his best lines, but it makes his companion perk up in surprise. "By the way, the answer to that is ‘yes’,” he adds, because why the hell not?

And then the beautiful man gives him a beautiful little smile.

“What's your name?” the man asks and Ace almost fails to mask the surprise on his face. That line actually _worked?_

“Ace,” he says, already prepared to make the familiar speech of how his mother always knew he'd be destined for the cards.

But the man is swimming closer, and Ace suddenly can’t remember any of his well-rehearsed story when the stunning stranger gets right up in his personal space.

“Ace,” he's saying his name in that _voice,_ and he looks even better up close, high cheekbones and shimmering blue eyes— “Can I ask you something?”

“Shoot,” Ace says lamely instead of coming up with a witty one-liner, too focused on the man clasping his hands in his own, and they're weirdly cold but incredibly soft and _wow,_ there's really no question of where this is going anymore. He's probably going to ask to take him home—

“Do you know what a siren is?”

The question takes Ace completely off guard, snapping his gaze up from their intertwined hands to look at the man's face.

Just in time to see the cute blue eyes and small smile morph into slit pupils and a toothy smirk showing off fangs that are _definitely_ not human.

He yelps as something wraps around his legs, slimy and scaly and _holy fucking shit_ it's the man's tail, a fish tail, he's heard the legends but he never believed them, but he sure as hell does now, but it’s too late and he's going to drown—

Except he's not sinking. The siren has his legs and arms immobilized, but he's keeping them both afloat, even though he could just dive underwater with Ace and he'd be helpless to stop it.

And despite the weird pupils and sharp teeth, he's looking at Ace almost curiously, as if to gauge his reaction again.

So Ace does what he does second best; defuse with humor.

“At least take me out to dinner before you tie me up.”

Yup, that will definitely either get him killed or thrown back on the beach in disgust.

But the creature merely blinks in confusion, seeming to process the words, and then he huffs out a laugh.

“You're lucky you're cute," the man simply offers, and then he leans in and Ace idly wonders if he's going to eat him. But instead there's a quick, chilly peck on his cheek, followed by a splash of water as the creature releases him and dives back underwater.

And Ace just floats there, staring stupidly at the small ripples formed by the splash, slowly bringing his hand up to his cheek to where the cold lips were just a moment ago.

“Same time tomorrow?” he calls out across the water, a grin spreading over his face when he hears a melodious laugh echoing from somewhere between the waves.


	7. Day 7: Rimming (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt for kinktober and the first chapter to justify the E rating!

This is far from the first time Ace finds himself face down, ass up with a certain handsome German architect hovering behind him.

However, it _is_ the first time there's not immediately slicked fingers or a rock-hard cock poking at his ass.

“Felix, hello?" Ace shoots over his shoulder with a grin. "You doing okay there bud— _HAAAH!_ ”

His sentence is cut short when a wet, warm tongue drags over his hole, a pleasant shiver shooting up his spine and helpless to stop the surprised moan spilling out.

“Is this okay?” Felix is pulling away to ask, and even through the obvious lust in his voice there's also a tinge of uncertainty. 

They've never done this before, most of their trysts hurried and desperate, foreplay something that was quickly forgotten when one could be called into a deathmatch at any moment. Ace never knew this was something Felix would be into, but now the last thing he wants is for him to stop.

“Yes, fuck, baby,” Ace groans, canting his hips up to give his lover better access. “ _More._ ”

The hitch of Felix’s breath makes his dick twitch, because it's almost like a sound of _anticipation_ —

His thoughts scatter in several different directions when Felix's mouth returns to his ass, groaning helplessly into his own forearm when the tongue starts gently circling his hole.

It's been so long since anyone has done this to him, and he doesn't even realize he's insistently pushing back against Felix's face, trying to encourage him to press harder, until his lover pulls away.

Suddenly, he realizes Felix might have never done this before—with _anyone_. He’s the first man Felix has been with, and from everything the other has told him, his previous conquests haven’t been all that adventurous.

“S-sorry,” Ace apologizes, his voice little more than a whisper.

His boyfriend responds with an encouraging murmur in what sounds like his native tongue, or Ace is just too far gone to make out the words. Either way, it makes him feel a lot better about his own enthusiasm, knowing he didn’t cross any boundaries.

What also makes him feel a lot better is the cute peck on his buttock before Felix spreads his cheeks wide.

And then the sinful mouth returns, much more determined than before, insistently kissing and lapping at his rim and causing Ace to let out a grateful sob and his dick to leak happily in approval.

“ _Please_ ,” Ace hears himself whimper, not sure what exactly he's begging for, but then a hand wraps loosely around his cock and he sighs in relief.

Felix slowly jacks him off while going to town on his ass, and Ace tries to make it last, tries to consider Felix's own arousal, but he's only human and is helpless to stop the pleasure from cresting all too quickly.

“Nnh, baby, I'm close—” he manages, biting his lip to somewhat suppress a filthy moan, letting Felix know that this is his cue to stop if he still wants to get to the actual fucking.

Instead Felix offers a pleased hum against his ass, somehow going at it with even _more_ enthusiasm than before, spearing his tongue to fuck into him and picking up the pace of his hand on Ace's cock.

And that's Ace's cue to stop holding back and he comes with a wail, shooting his load over Felix's hand and the pile of clothes scattered beneath them.

When the post-orgasmic haze fades from around his mind and he sees Felix, flushed and panting and chin glistening from spit while he palms at his cock through his pants, there's only one thing on Ace's mind.

“Why don't you bend over for me, baby?” Ace purrs, eager to return the favor. He even pokes his tongue out cheekily and relishes in the way Felix squirms from anticipation.


	8. Day 8: Abandoned

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for whumptober, so this is an angsty one! warning for alcoholism and implied depression + child neglect, rated T.

Escaping the Entity should have meant they’d finally be happy.

And they were, at the start. Felix remembers the relief of being free from the oppressive fog, the smile on Ace’s face when they saw the sun for the first time in years, and the happiness in his chest when Ace agreed to come with him to Germany.

It didn’t take long for things to go wrong.

Felix tried his best to go back to living a normal life, but it proved too much for him. The deathmatches of the realm had been easy to understand, one-dimensional choices where the wrong one meant near-instant death.

After that, how was he supposed to navigate the intricacies of the human society? He’d promised himself he would start his life anew, dropping his fake persona to pursue his genuine passions in life, but it was so much more convenient to slip right back into a familiar suit and mingle with old connections.

He did his best to ignore the pangs of guilt when meetings and formal dinners ran long, especially when his daughter was visiting. Ace brought it up, saying the girl was more familiar with her nanny than her own father, and Felix assured him it was “just until this project is over”.

He was lying, and they both knew it.

To his credit, Ace withstood his lies and bullshit excuses for an entire year.

Felix wasn’t surprised when he eventually exploded. Harsh words were freely flowing out, claiming he never wanted this life, being stuck in a country he barely knew the language of and withering away in an empty mansion. That he never wanted to have kids but was willing to give it a shot because he _loved_ Felix, but he wasn’t about to put in effort where there was none to be had in return.

“We didn’t survive years of torture for _this!_ ” Ace insisted, and looking at his distressed face Felix realized he couldn’t remember when he’d last seen him smile. “This isn’t _me_ , and I know it’s not you, either.”

Felix wanted to believe him, and in a moment of clarity, dropped his expensive suitcase with its expensive contents to the marble floor and pulled Ace into his arms, promising he’d find a way to make it better.

And then he did the worst thing he could have possibly done.

After a week of absolutely nothing changing, he’d chosen the lazy way out and bought a ten thousand euro watch to hopefully calm his partner down and maybe even get him to smile.

He didn’t think he’d ever seen Ace look as offended as when he presented the gift to him.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” his boyfriend spat.

“It’s the newest—”

“I don’t _care!_ ” Ace yelled, animatedly gesturing with his hands as if trying to explain to a complete idiot. “I want _you,_ not the shit you can give me!”

And then, Felix _said_ the worst thing he could have possibly responded with.

“Don’t pretend like my background isn’t why you chose to come with me.”

The look of pure _hurt_ flashing across Ace’s features let him know just how much he’d fucked up.

“After all this time, that’s how you see me,” his lover said quietly, like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. When Felix didn’t respond, not knowing _how_ to respond, Ace walked away.

And when Felix woke up the next day, all traces of Ace were gone, only the cold emptiness of the family estate to keep him company.

That’s when he hit the bottle.

He doesn’t remember how many days he spent locked up in his study, drinking his father’s collection of rare whiskeys like it was cheap wine, bottle upon bottle to dull out the pain of losing one of the few things that were real in his miserable life of lies.

The maids and nannies came by, and he remembers his daughter’s laughter gradually turning to a worried whimper as the nanny carried her away and told her to “let daddy work”, closing the study door and leaving Felix to wallow in his misery.

And then there was the lawsuit, his ex wanting to get full custody after his daughter told her “papa just drinks juice and acts like a zombie”. Felix hired the best lawyer money could buy and used the opportunity of his daughter not being around for the duration of the case to get even more drunk than before.

He didn’t show up to court and was appalled when his butler informed him that he’d lost the case, because his lawyer had just called for the fourteenth time and “sir, you should really answer your phone and mail”.

He’d had his phone turned off for at least a month at this point, and his email hadn’t been opened in weeks. Felix managed to sit down and glance at his overflowing inbox for a whole minute before feeling like he was going to throw up, angry red exclamation marks and even angrier clients demanding his attention.

He’d slammed the laptop shut and went to sleep off his hangover.

It wasn’t long until Lauren, his business partner, showed up on his doorstep and announced she was buying him out of the company. She was looking even more stressed than usual, dark circles under her eyes from no doubt having to cover for Felix’s work after he dropped off the radar.

She never did spare anyone’s feelings and he always admired that about her, calling him out as the useless piece of shit he knew that he was. But when her expression softened and she urged him to seek help, Felix wished her a good day before slamming the door in her face.

Now left with nothing but the empty mansion that has never felt like a home and a family name that meant nothing, Felix couldn’t help the feeling of rightness spreading through him. He’d always known he was a fraud, a failure of a human being that didn’t deserve any of his success or popularity, and now it was finally proven to him.

He’d been a shitty boyfriend, a lousy father, and a failure of an architect. No wonder everyone had abandoned him.

In a moment of weakness, he sat himself on his daughter’s untouched bed and held his phone in his hand, staring at Ace’s contact. Maybe he could still make it right; now he didn’t have anything to distract him, and wasn’t that was Ace had wanted?

He hovered over the call button, but hesitated. Maybe Ace had changed his number, going back to his old ways of scamming and committing petty crimes, living a meaningless life—

Felix dropped the phone on the floor and buried his face into his hands in disgust, pulling on his own hair in frustration. Even after losing _everything_ he ever cared about to his selfish decisions, his ego still insisted that he was better than everyone else.

And that’s when he decided the best thing he could do for his loved ones was to never contact them again.


	9. Day 9: Take me instead

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt for whumptober, rated T, no warnings except angst and typical dbd violence!

Felix had never considered himself to be a brave man.

His life before the realm had been proof enough of his cowardice, donning expensive suits and hiding behind a mask of rigid professionalism and pointless small talk. All he’d really wanted to do was lounge around in his sweatpants and draw unconventional buildings that would never be approved by the stuck-up traditionalists in his field.

His defining moment of courage had been walking after his father into the mysterious fog, despite every bone in his body screaming at him not to.

Maybe it was some sick kind of destiny that brought him to this world, filled with violence and death and forcing him to forget about his own insecurities lest he wanted to end up on a meat hook five seconds into a trial. His façade had cracked as quickly as his spine when he took a chainsaw through it during his second match. Now he was showing genuine emotion for the first time in what had to be a decade, even if that emotion was fear.

He had companions that shared his fate, a ragtag group of unfortunate souls who were all just as broken as him in one way or another. They didn’t care that he was awkward and scared, going as far as to trade their lives so he could escape, reassuring words that he’d eventually get the hang of it and they were there to support him until then.

Maybe this was him finally getting the hang of it, or maybe it was just that he finally had someone he wanted to protect.

Felix knew that Ace could handle himself better than most of them, giving the killers a run for their money and always seeming to manage a lucky dodge or stun at just the right moment. He also knew that the man wasn’t particularly bothered about getting sacrificed, usually going with a grin on his face and waving off the others’ concerns back at the campfire.

He didn’t _like_ seeing his newly acquired boyfriend running for his life and getting hurt, but he also knew they’d both have a better chance of escaping if he let Ace distract the killer while he focused on the generators. Felix felt bad for not being as good in a chase, letting fear control him and make mistakes. Ace had responded with an encouraging smile and a “Don’t worry your pretty head about it, let me handle the killer and everything will be fine!”, and Felix felt a little better about his cowardice.

Right now, fear about his own well-being is the last thing on his mind as he runs through the labyrinth of The Game’s basement, bumping into crates and barrels in his haste to locate the heartbeat. Felix didn’t think he’d ever be chasing the killer, but the adrenaline pumping in his veins isn’t because of the close proximity to the Ghostface, it’s from fear for his boyfriend.

Felix almost sobs in relief when he finally spots Ace, rounding a corner and running toward him, face twisted in pain and holding his bleeding gut, the killer hot on his heels. Ace’s eyes meet his and widen in surprise, and Felix doesn’t give him time to protest, shoving himself in between the two to protect his lover from the inevitable fatal swing of the killer’s weapon.

But the hit never comes, the Ghostface only interested in his original target, and Felix feels anger bubbling up in his chest. This is _not fair_ , why did he have to pick Ace, throwing the entire game just to make sure he gets the kill?

They reach a narrow corridor next to the freezer room, and Felix stops dead in his tracks and turns to face the killer, creating a physical barrier in front of the asshole and allow his boyfriend to get some distance from his pursuer.

Felix doesn’t expect the killer to shove him aside, stumbling into a wall and his mind reeling _because he didn’t know they were allowed to do that,_ the killer now going against the Entity just to make sure he kills Ace.

Right as Felix regains his balance and is about to run after the killer, he hears Ace’s scream as he hits the ground for the third and final time in the trial.

Shock mingles with fear and hate in his chest, rounding a corner just in time for the killer to pick up his lover’s mostly limp body.

The utterly defeated look in Ace’s normally lively and expressive eyes is what finally breaks him.

“ _NO!_ ” Felix screams louder than he thinks he ever has, hooks and stabs nothing compared to the feeling of his heart shattering into pieces. Even the killer seems surprised, turning around to face him instead of immediately transporting Ace to a hook to finish the job.

“Take me instead!” Felix pleads, desperation clear in his voice. “Just let him go!”

Ace, too tired to even try to struggle free from the killer’s grip, weakly lifts his head to look at Felix, and _God,_ he wants nothing more than to pull him down into his arms—

“Oh my God, you have to be kidding me,” the Ghostface snorts in disgust, and Felix grits his teeth, radiating offense but not wanting to piss off the killer further. “You don’t _seriously_ care about this worthless sack of shit, do you?” the killer asks in a mocking tone, jostling Ace’s broken body on his shoulder and making him hiss in pain.

It takes every ounce of Felix’s willpower not to slam a fist into the killer’s obnoxious mask, knowing he’s just trying to push his buttons.

“Let him go,” Felix tries again.

“Hmm,” the Ghostface pretends to mull over. “Okay, I will. If you ask nicely.”

Felix can’t believe his ears and even sees Ace perk up, regaining some of his usual energy.

“I—” Felix starts, humiliation flooding over him but forcing himself to continue. “Please let him go, you can kill me instead. Please.”

“Baby, no—” Ace tries to protest, but it’s interrupted by a broken sob as Ghostface slams shoulder-first into a wall, banging Ace’s head against it with a sickening ‘thud’.

“ _Don’t!_ ” Felix yells, helpless to do anything but watch, his entire body shaking from anger.

“Yeah, you’re right, shithead,” Ghostface mockingly addresses Ace over his shoulder. “Tell your _girlfriend_ he needs to work on his negotiation skills.”

And before Felix can do anything, the killer lifts his quietly sobbing lover up on a hook, and Felix feels a part of him die right along with Ace when the Entity claws into him and claims its prize.

“Now, where were we?” the Ghostface turns to him, twirling his blade in his hand, and Felix doesn’t even bother running.


	10. Day 10: Fairytale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a soulmate au for flufftober that ended up a lot more angsty than i intended. rated T for implied violence and abuse!

Felix had always been unsure about a lot of things in his life. Throughout the years, he’d wondered if he’d ever fit in with the other kids, been worried that his grades weren’t good enough to get into the university he wanted, and eventually doubted his skills even as an established architect.

But there was one thing he was absolutely sure of, something that he’d known without question for as long as he could remember:

His soulmate was an asshole.

He was woken up in the middle of the night, _again,_ from a sharp pain in his jaw reminiscent of what he thought getting sucker punched in the face must feel like. He blinked awake and rubbed at the spot, knowing it wouldn’t be any use, praying that this was a one-off—

Pain shot up his spine from his lower back, akin to getting slammed against something, before there was a sharp jab to his stomach that made him choke on a pained gasp.

Felix gritted his teeth and wondered how the hell his soulmate was even still alive after three decades of similar treatment.

It had started when he was just a kid, occasionally feeling phantom pains of a skinned knee or a bump on his forehead; typical mishaps from a lively child. His parents had been overjoyed that he had such a strong connection to his soulmate, telling him most people didn’t feel anything until adulthood, and that his soulmate had to be a very special girl.

But then the sensations progressed to kicks and punches and broken bones, forcing Felix to sometimes skip school and lay in bed while his parents’ worried whispers carried through the door, concerns of abuse and questions of “who could do that to a child?” floating in the air.

Luckily the episodes were few and far between and it became just another one of Felix’s quirks for his peers to resent him for.

When puberty hit and some of his male classmates started complaining about strange cramps in their abdomen, Felix was elated to notice that he felt nothing.

And then one day, he felt the very obvious agony of getting kicked in the nuts, doubling over mid-class and causing some of the girls to glance at him in sympathy.

His soulmate was male, and he didn’t know how to feel about that.

On one hand, he knew he’d never meet him. On the other, he questioned if the universe knew something he didn’t, for the first time considering whether the obvious path of eventually marrying a nice girl from a reputable family and popping out some kids to continue the Richter legacy was right for him.

He never told his anyone about his soulmate’s gender, even going as far as to avoid dating altogether. He wanted to bring up his doubts to his parents, but he didn’t have the courage, and then one fateful summer they were gone.

The loss of his parents made him shove himself back on what he knew they’d considered the “right” path, immersing himself in his studies, forcing himself to practice small talk, and even getting a girlfriend. She was even sympathetic to the occasional days where he just laid in bed and cursed his soulmate for getting into trouble again, petting his hair and reassuring him it’d be over soon. All in all, he’d pieced his life together the best he could, and living with the pain became just another annoyance.

But then it got so much worse.

For an entire year straight, his soulmate seemed to get into fights several times a day, Felix helpless to stop the agony over feeling a rib crack or getting hit over the head with a blunt object. He constantly woke up screaming in pain and had to excuse himself from countless business meetings, his entire life revolving around the pain. His only relief were the strong painkillers and sleep medications the doctors prescribed him, but even they weren’t always enough.

He understood why his girlfriend decided to leave, and he was surprised he didn’t feel anything, maybe because he was too high on the meds to really register anything that wasn’t the pain.

Then, out of the blue, it stopped.

Felix took some time to fully realize it, cautious to get off the meds and then dealing with the withdrawal of them. He wondered if his soulmate had died, and instead of feeling the immense relief the thought should have brought him, he found himself crying.

So he resorted to the dumbest thing he could come up with.

He didn’t know what brought the idea on, never having thought to get revenge for the countless hours of pain his soulmate had caused him, but he _had_ to know.

And that’s why he kicked his bedside table as hard as he could, which made him curse and grab at his foot because he hadn’t realized _actual pain was worse than phantom pain!_

He laid on the bed clutching his foot for what had to be half an hour. The pain subsided to a dull throb but there was nothing in retaliation, no fist to the face or kick to the ribs like he was used to, and the absence of pain somehow hurt even _more_. He felt alone in a way he hadn’t since when his parents disappeared, choking out a sob—

“ _Ow!_ ”

—until pain flared up his uninjured leg and he grasped his foot on reflex.

A laugh bubbled up in his throat through the tears, disbelief over the fact that _of course the idiot had used the other foot_ and now they were both basically immobilized for the next couple of hours.

But whoever the bastard was, at least he was still alive, and Felix knew he wasn’t alone.

Life got so much better after that small incident. Maybe his soulmate realized there was an actual human being sharing his pain, or maybe he’d had a close call after the year of violence that made him somewhat change his ways.

Felix had a business partner now, Lauren, who was way too supportive of his predicament. Even if she would chuckle at him when he was cussing out his troublemaker soulmate while ramming his elbow into the wall to get his point across to the idiot, she never blamed him for having to take a day off or having to step out of a business meeting when it got too much.

And he told her more than he’d ever told anyone, from his soulmate’s gender to the worry he felt after the pain had suddenly stopped, and to their current back-and-forth that was almost playful.

So of course she’d notice when he suddenly blushed furiously as they were sitting on a plane on their way to a conference.

“What’s he doing _now?_ ” Lauren asked curiously.

“Apparently a goddamn _tiger_ or something,” Felix hissed through gritted teeth, pinching his arm _hard_ and trying to ignore the sharp sting of nails raking down his back. “Who claws at someone’s back like that?”

Lauren burst into laughter and slapped him on the shoulder, and their combined efforts luckily seemed enough to snap his soulmate out of it and get his partner to stop before Felix imploded from embarrassment.

Felix had never felt anything like that before, the only thing having made it through their bond being immense pain.

In retrospect, he should have realized it was because he was getting closer to his soulmate.

The conference in Las Vegas had been Lauren’s idea, and Felix scrunched his face up in disgust as soon as he took in the gaudy faux luxury of the hotel they were staying in.

“Did they pick this place to kill our inspiration? Or get ideas flowing out of spite?” Felix commented, regarding the ridiculous fake gold fountain in the lobby.

“Be nice,” Lauren chastised, and Felix relented, deciding the least he could do for her was not complain about the trip every five minutes.

But then they met up with the rest of the group of international architects and were dragged to a casino for “optional but recommended team-building” and Felix was just about ready to bash his face against the nearest slot machine over being forced to socialize.

Lauren pulled him aside to let a group of security guards escort a patron out of the establishment, Felix sparing an envious glance at the stranger and wishing he could take his place so he didn’t have to put up with any awful group activities.

“Gentlemen, we can talk about this, sì? I’m sure there’s been a misunderstanding—” the man feebly tried to address one of the guards.

“Keep moving!”

And then the man got shoved forward and stumbled to the ground, and Felix’s entire world stopped turning as he realized he felt both the push against his shoulder and his knee hitting the hideous marble floor in time with what was happening in front of him.

“Stop!” he was yelling before he even realized, his feet carrying him towards the scene.

“Felix!?” Lauren called behind him, but he didn’t even turn around. He had to know—

“Sir, please go back to your group. This doesn’t concern you,” one of the guards said while another one yanked his maybe-soulmate to his feet, a harsh grip on his arm that made him wince—

And Felix felt the pain like it was his own, hissing out a curse and clutching at his arm through his suit, and from the way the guard’s eyes widened in surprise and Lauren gasped behind him, nobody had any doubt as to what was going on.

The pain disappeared when the guard released his hold on the man they were about to throw out, his _soulmate,_ Felix couldn’t believe it—

“Apologies, sir. We didn’t know he was with you,” one of the guards said, clearing the way between him and who was supposedly the love of his life.

“Oh honey, there you are,” the man lied so convincingly even Felix almost believed him, casually walking towards him. “I was just trying to tell the lovely gentlemen over here about our—honeymoon,” he settled on, a pleasant smile on his face even while flighty brown eyes glanced around as if looking for an escape.

Felix’s head was swimming, and he knew he should say something so the security wouldn’t get suspicious, but he was too busy taking in the fact that his soulmate was right in front of him, not seeming at all phased by the revelation that had Felix shook to the core.

Luckily, Lauren was an absolute lifesaver.

“Why don’t you two lovebirds go get some air!” she encouraged, giving Felix one of her now familiar shoulder slaps.

And _that_ seemed to give his soulmate pause, a hand coming up to touch his own shoulder while his eyes widened slowly in surprise.

“You’re right,” Felix offered Lauren, before turning back to his soulmate. “Come on… ‘darling’.”

He didn’t _have_ to grab the man’s hand to get him to follow him out of the casino, but he did, trying to tell himself it was only to sell the lie better. That still didn’t explain why he felt remorse when he let go.

“Okay, how did you do it?” his soulmate demanded, immediately crossing his arms over his chest and putting some space between them.

And it wasn’t like Felix expected love confessions or a heated make-out session or even any chemistry, but he sure as hell wasn’t prepared for an _accusation_.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” the man responded. “I appreciate you covering for me, but how did you make me feel it when your friend smacked you?”

“You _know_ how,” Felix insisted, his own impatience surfacing. This wasn’t how he’d imagined their first meeting going at all.

“Yeah, sure buddy,” the man laughed dryly. “Do you know what the odds are? There’s seven _billion_ people—”

“What were you doing in 2014?” Felix interrupted.

“I’m sorry?”

“I felt you getting beat up almost every single day. What the hell were you doing?” Felix accused.

The wariness melted away from the man’s features, replaced by recognition.

“I was in jail,” he said. “In Panama. It, uh, wasn’t the friendliest of places to be.”

Well, that explained a lot, and wasn’t really surprising considering the display Felix saw inside the casino.

“It was fucking _torture,_ ” Felix pointed out, and his soulmate winced.

“You’re telling me,” he said quietly, averting his eyes.

“And when it stopped, I was so scared that you’d died,” Felix confessed, not wanting his soulmate to think he was still angry at him.

The man looked back up at him, surprise clear on his features.

“I always thought you _hoped_ I’d died,” he said. “And that you were just… checking. Even after that.”

“Why would I want you dead?” Felix scoffed, a little offended.

“There’s a considerable amount of people who do,” his soulmate shrugged with a sheepish grin. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry you’ve been stuck with _me_ as your… you know. Probably thought I was some hot chick,” he grinned but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“After all the times you’ve been kicked in the nuts over the years?” Felix snorted.

“Shit, sorry—yeah, you’re the unluckiest guy alive,” the man chuckled. “I’ve basically put you through hell.”

“It wasn’t that bad,” Felix argued. “I was… uh, in a bad place. Several. And it always helped to know that I wasn’t alone.”

“Is that why you started bumping into shit? To get my attention?” the man smirked, and Felix didn’t have the heart to tell him it was because he wasn’t constantly bedridden and in pain and could finally afford to be careless.

“Maybe,” Felix smiled back. “It always felt kind of like… flirting.”

“That’s kinda fucked up, but I’ll take it,” his soulmate joked.

There was a beat of silence as the man regarded him curiously, and Felix took the opportunity to finally properly look at who he’d been sharing a bond with for the past forty years.

The man looked older than him but not by much, grey hair and tanned skin combined with the lively accent giving him an exotic edge that Felix couldn’t quite place. He was handsome, symmetrical features and a sharp jawline with a well-trimmed beard, and even though his long nose was crooked from having been broken one too many times, Felix was mesmerized.

He was shorter than Felix by a couple of centimeters, but had broad shoulders and a nice build that Felix couldn’t help but think would fit perfectly in his arms.

He barely even spared a thought to the tacky clothes the man was wearing, the deep purple button-up with a questionable card print or black sating lounge slacks never something _he_ would personally choose to wear. Still, he wouldn’t mind them strewn on his bedroom floor while they were busy with… other things.

Felix didn’t even realize he’d been leaning closer until a hesitant but oh-so-warm hand effortlessly came up to rest on his shoulder.

“Geez, if I’d have known you were this hot I would’ve done something sooner,” the man purred approvingly, dark chocolate eyes crinkling at the corners when he smiled.

“Like what?” Felix was able to ask even while his head was swimming from the compliment, daring to lift a hand to rest on the man’s hip.

“I don’t know. Carve my phone number into my skin or something.”

“That sounds painful,” Felix offered, even though he shared the sentiment.

“Worth it,” the man grinned. “What’s your name, gorgeous?”

“Felix,” he said, trying to ignore how the praise made his neck heat up. “Yours?”

“Ace,” his soulmate, Ace, grinned even wider than before, and Felix looked down at his tacky shirt again.

“Like in the card, or…?”

“Yup!” Ace beamed. “And I know yours means ‘lucky’, which is the most hilarious coincidence I’ve ever heard.”

Felix bit back a comment about destiny, instead voicing the question he hoped was on both of their minds.

“Where do you want to go from here?”

“Well, that’s up to you,” Ace said, giving him a mischievous smile. “You wanna be my lucky charm while you’re here, baby?”

Felix wanted to correct him and say “forever”, but his rational side knew it was way too early to tell. And since he was an expert at repressing his feeling at this point, he had no trouble giving a small smile and offering a casual answer.

“Sure.”

…And that’s where his self-restraint ended, because when Ace smiled happily and wrapped his hands around his neck, Felix found himself immediately going in for a kiss.

The approving moan against his lips told him everything he needed to know.


	11. Day 11: Crying

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for whumptober; rated T for pure angst & warnings for amnesia and implied suicide.

If there was anything Ace had always been good at, it was dealing with all the various shit life threw his way. He'd smile and roll with the punches, not wasting time on pointless concepts like regret and what if:s.

The Entity's world had been no exception. Sure, it was objectively worse than just another poker losing streak or scam gone wrong, but since there wasn't anything he could do to change it, he just tried to make the most of it. And no, he didn’t particularly _like_ getting chased or stabbed or brutally murdered, but in the end he was still alive and free to hang out with his newfound friends and make shitty jokes. It was the new normal, and like always, Ace adapted with surprising ease.

Until he didn't.

It had been like any typical not-day at the campfire, where a trial was taking place but Ace wasn't chosen for it. The only thing different from usual was that Ace was a little on edge, though from worry or anticipation, he wasn't sure.

Felix was the newest addition to their group, and despite only being there for what couldn't be more than a couple of months, he'd made a huge impact on Ace's life. Ace had never been any kind of clingy in his old life, but even he had to admit that he'd much rather have Felix by his side at the campfire than in a trial at the mercy of the Entity's Monster of the Day.

And maybe his heart broke a little when Adam, Cheryl and Quentin returned from the trial and Adam met his eyes and offered a pained “I'm sorry, we tried”. Ace gave a half-assed reassurance in return, and despite knowing that they always came back after a sacrifice and weren't any worse for wear, it wasn't a pleasant thing to go through.

But if he'd thought that information broke his heart, the next one shattered it into pieces.

Felix finally returned to the campfire, his look just as impeccable as ever, like he'd been preparing for an important business meeting instead of taking a chainsaw through the gut. Ace felt his fake smile give way to a genuine one, unexplainable relief flooding through him upon the confirmation that yes, even after a hundred sacrifices Felix was still alive. For some reason, Felix was frowning, so Ace made his way over to cheer him up, a witty comment already on the tip of his tongue—

“Wo zum Teufel bin ich?" Felix said, looking at him with a very confused expression that made him stop dead in his tracks.

It wasn't uncommon for Felix to revert back to his native tongue in certain situations, but it was usually only a word or two. And it wasn't like him to keep his distance from the others like this, not since befriending the group and _especially_ not after they’d started dating.

“Come again?" Nea snorted from somewhere behind Ace, probably thinking it some kind of joke.

When Felix looked at her with clear wariness, Ace already knew what he was going to say, having seen that same exact look only months before.

“Where am I?” Felix asked, and then further twisted the knife in Ace's heart by looking back at him and adding “Who are you?”.

Ace didn't pay much attention after that. He sat by the fire while the others hovered around Felix in worry, staring at the ground and asking himself _why_.

Claudette came by to offer him some empty words of comfort and a gentle hand on his shoulder. He heard Bill raising his voice in the group and urging them to “calm the fuck down and let the guy breathe”. And eventually, Yui was there, kneeling before him and commanding Ace to look at her.

“He got hit with Leatherface's mallet really hard during the mori,” the biker told him, her stern expression being enough to convince Ace. “Adam and Claud said it's post-traumatic amnesia from the concussion. It's temporary.”

“Yeah. Okay,” Ace said, realizing how shaky his voice sounded, dragging a hand through his hair to try to quell his doubts.

Hours passed and Felix didn't get any better. Meg and Steve were by his side the entire time, reminiscing stories from the campfire and some of his best moments of outsmarting the killers to try to jog his memory, but nothing seemed to work.

Claudette suggested maybe Ace should talk to him, as he'd been the closest to him since he got here. So he swallowed his own grief and put on a shitty smile and shooed Meg and Steve away to sit down with Felix alone.

But when Felix started talking about how he had to get back because of his girlfriend and the baby he was so excited for, Ace had to nope the fuck out before he started bawling or cussing him out.

He avoided Felix for the entire day, playing some dumb card game with Ash he was pretty sure the other just made up, and despite his mind not being anywhere near the cards the bastard let him win. Nea was being even more obnoxious than usual, shit-talking the killers and trying to get Ace to join in, and it was really obvious that they were trying to keep him distracted, but he appreciated it nonetheless.

Then the next trial came and Dwight, Tapp, Kate and Zarina were off, and Ace was left to stare at the futile sight of Jane asking Felix about trials he had no recollection of.

“What if he never remembers?” Ace heard Cheryl whisper.

“It's temporary,” Yui immediately snapped.

“Maybe it takes another resurrection to fix,” Adam said, but it sounded like he was trying to convince himself.

Ace felt empty. The worry and fear and absolute loneliness had created a hole in his chest he didn't know how to fix, and wouldn't until Felix was back to his old self, because he _would_ be, because that's how it always worked—

And then Dwight stumbled into camp and looked around with pure terror in his eyes and asked if they knew a way back into the city and Ace's world stopped turning.

The hole in his chest was instantly filled with grief and anguish and he was helpless to stop the sob from wracking his entire body, burying his face into his shaking hands and mourning what he now knew he'd never get back.

There was a commotion again, and he wasn't the only one who was crying, the entire group shaken to the core at their leader losing his memory and now realizing it wasn't an accident.

There were arms around Ace’s shoulders and who he thought was Laurie whispering that she's “so, so sorry, but we’ll get through this”, and if he could do something other than cry he'd have told her that no, he doesn't think they will.

The Entity had a lot of creative ways to torture them, but none of them had been enough to break him until now.

It was hours or maybe even days before Ace came to and could try to think somewhat clearly. Nancy and Adam were standing in the middle of camp, evenly explaining that they needed to start documenting everything, that the Entity had changed its rules and a death now meant forgetting everything after coming to the realm.

Some of the others were sobbing and the rest looked grimly serious, the usual laughter and outrageous stories around the fire long forgotten. Yui was hugging Kate in a death grip and Nea and Meg held each other and carried a hurried conversation with worried expressions, the couples no doubt terrified of forgetting each other.

He looked over to Dwight, and saw Jake being much more calm and collected than Ace could ever be, patiently explaining everything to his boyfriend and gently holding his hand. Dwight already looked almost as smitten as before he lost his memory, and Ace couldn't help the sharp pang of jealousy at how easy it was for them.

“So you, uh… said you left your family? Can I ask why?” Dwight asked, just as eager as ever to get to know Jake, and blushing when Jake gave a lovestruck smile and shared his life story without complaint.

How Jake wasn't a broken shell of a man like him, he'd never know.

Ace considered telling Felix everything, but what would be the point? Even if he did somehow manage to worm his way into Felix's heart again, the memories were lost forever, not to mention he’d be back to square one after Felix got sacrificed the next time.

There was a map and a piece of charcoal shoved into his hands, and Ace looked up at Zarina's usually carefully schooled features twisted into uncertainty.

“We're writing letters to yourselves,” Zarina explained. “For when— _if_ we die, we have some guidance and know about the important stuff.”

She left him to it and he idly wondered if it would have even made a difference for Felix.

Suddenly, a new determination hit him and he started jotting down what he knew he needed to hear. His codeword for safety, so he’d know it was real. How he got to the realm and how long he'd been there. The names of his friends and the insistence that he trusted them all with his life. The few killers who were somewhat reasonable. The names of the couples and some random gossip he could use to lighten the mood.

‘Felix’ he started a sentence automatically, but then paused. A dark thought was creeping up in the back of his mind, and he knew exactly what needed to happen next. He finished the sentence with ‘has a girlfriend and kid in the real world’, before folding the piece of paper and placing it in his jacket pocket and waiting for a trial to start.

It was two days before Ace got called into a trial, and while the others were panicking and hugging each other and trying not to cry, he felt calmer than he had since this whole thing started.

“Keep an eye on Ace, okay?” he even heard Kate murmur to Bill, and it was almost enough to make him change his mind.

But then the trial started and Ace ran right into the center of the map to get chased first by the Wraith.

He was on his second hook, struggling against the Entity’s claws, with only one generator left and only one other person having been hooked. His chances were looking good, a weak killer on a strong map, his teammates pumping out generator after generator. With a much worse threat than sacrifice and resurrection looming in the distance, their determination had improved tenfold.

The Wraith was nowhere to be seen when Bill made his way over to the hook.

“Hold on, bud,” Bill grunted, slowly vaulting the window in front of him as not to alert the killer of the rescue in advance.

The last generator popped and Ace smiled for the first time in days, a toothy grin that probably came off as maniacal, realizing he could finally fulfill his plan while knowing the others would make it out.

“Ace, what are you—” there was alarm on Bill's features and he picked up his pace to a sprint, but it was too late.

“Sorry, old friend,” Ace offered before he let go.

“ _ACE!_ ”

Bill's panicked scream was the last thing he heard before the claw pierced straight through his gut, and he had a few seconds of time to feel a bad for putting Bill through that, before his consciousness faded to black.

At least he wouldn’t remember any of it.


	12. Day 12: Clenched fists

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more soulmate au for a flufftober prompt, rated G, no warnings! just pure fluff continued from day 10.

‘I love you,' Felix thinks for what has to be the twentieth time today, and it's not even 10 AM.

He grits his teeth and clenches his fists to stop himself from blurting it out. It's way too soon, and when Ace shoots him a funny look he merely offers an encouraging smile, giving his companion the incentive to continue telling the story of how he scammed a group of tourists out of their money at only nine years old.

The past three days have been amazing. Felix has barely attended the conference he'd originally come to Vegas for, architecture seeming incredibly boring for the first time in his life. At least compared to his honest to god _soulmate_.

Ace snickers at one of his own jokes and Felix stares with a dopey smile. Damn, Ace has to have figured out at least some of his feelings by now, even if he's not saying them out loud. He’s acting like a lovesick puppy, and he’s helpless to stop it.

The waitress comes by their table and Ace offers her a charming smile and gives her his menu before turning back to Felix.

“I'll have what he's having!" Ace smiles. “My treat, baby.”

And maybe Felix should protest, his family's wealth not taking the slightest bit of dent even if he were to have covered all of their expenses this weekend. But it's been so damn nice to feel like Ace likes him for _him_ , and not his money or name.

“Blueberry waffles and a black coffee, please,” Felix says instead.

It's not what he'd usually have for breakfast, but there's a lot of things he's done during his three short days in the city of sin he didn't think he'd ever do.

Meet his soulmate. Ditch an architecture seminar to gamble. Sleep with a man.

Fall in love.

“Aww, with blueberries?” Ace teases. “You're too cute.”

"I figured you weren't that hungry, after stuffing your face with _sausage_ this morning,” Felix shoots right back. And when Ace laughs at his joke despite it not being that funny, Felix has to clench his fists again.

Curse his dumb little heart for falling way too fast.

They finish their breakfast while Ace asks him about anything he can think of, from his childhood pet cat to his most embarrassing drinking story. Three days isn't nearly enough time to really get to know each other, Felix realizes this. But he’s also acutely aware of the fact that his plane leaves in six hours and he needs to do _something_ before that.

They've spent the last forty-eight hours straight together, and about twelve before that. He's spent every night sleeping next to Ace.

Well. Among other things.

He's lucky Lauren had the foresight to get them separate rooms _and_ have a respectable two-room distance between said rooms. Felix could deal with her knowing little smirks every time they ran into each other in the hallway, but having her hear the main event was definitely something he was glad he'd been able to avoid.

After the meal Ace drags him to a Ferris wheel, and it's a little silly for two grown men to visit at noon, but he doesn't care in the slightest. If anything, the privacy will be nice, and hopefully he’ll get a chance to talk about the future in a way that doesn’t completely scare Ace off.

Felix’s heart skips a beat when Ace sits down on his side of the small gondola, tilting it at an angle from off-balance but apparently willing to sacrifice an easy ride just to be close to him.

And maybe they spend half of the ride making out instead of actually talking like he’d planned, but Felix just can’t get enough. He wants to stay like this forever, silently cursing his visitor visa that will expire tomorrow.

Felix reluctantly pulls away from the kiss, resting his forehead against Ace's. The other looks at him with curious brown eyes and a fond smile, and Felix digs his nails into his palms to stop himself from spilling his heart.

“Shame you have to leave so soon,” the corner of Ace's mouth twitches up but there's a sadness in his eyes that betrays his real sentiment.

It's enough for Felix to unclench his hands and give up all semblance of subtlety.

“Come with me.”

It's not what he really wants to say, but it's close enough, and surprise washes over Ace's features.

“To Germany,” Ace says, raising a disbelieving eyebrow.

“Only for a few days. Or weeks,” Felix says, hoping he doesn't come across as too forward. Ace is silent, so he continues. “Or we can go somewhere else—maybe Italy? I'll pay," he rambles, definitely coming off as desperate from the way Ace's eyes widen in shock. "Sorry, I just… don't want this to end,” Felix cringes in embarrassment.

“What then?” Ace asks, an unreadable expression on his face. “After the… vacation or whatever. What's your plan for after?”

Felix takes a shaky breath.

“How do you feel about living in Germany?” he asks.

“With you,” Ace clarifies.

“If you want to,” he says. “Or I can help you find an apartment.”

“Why?” Ace asks.

“I mean, moving in together is a big step—”

“No, I mean why _me?_ ” Ace clarifies.

Felix gives a pointed stare to his—need he repeat it?—goddamn _soulmate_.

“Yeah, I know, we share a pain receptor or something,” Ace dismisses with a wave of his hand. “But I've told you what my life is like. I mean I know I'm great, but I'm not _that_ great,” he jokes, but there's uncertainty hidden underneath the smile.

“You're the most interesting person I've ever met,” Felix says, hoping to ease the other’s sudden insecurity.

“I'm a freaking broke ass con man,” Ace shoots back. “And you're this… gorgeous, respectable businessman!”

“Maybe it's meant to be,” Felix argues. “We balance each other out.”

“Ah yes, your three thousand positives and my twenty big fat red flags,” Ace snarks.

“I’ve had it so damn _easy_ compared to you,” Felix argues, and even Ace looks a little taken aback at that.

Ace had told him a lot about himself, but there were gaps in his story, injuries Felix had felt that were never explained. He'd never pry, but it also wasn't too hard to fill in the blanks himself.

“I never had to work for anything in my life, but you can be sure I'm fighting for _this_ ,” he says, taking Ace's hand in his and hoping against hope that the man he’s hopelessly in love with doesn't push him away.

“Okay.”

“…What?”

“I said okay,” Ace says, intertwining their fingers with a smile. “I'll come with you.”

“Are you serious?” Felix asks, not believing his ears and hope blossoming in his chest.

“I've never been able to quit while I'm ahead,” Ace grins. “Let's see what happens.”

Felix's heart feels like it's about to burst, and he leans in for a kiss that Ace is happy to respond to.

“Just, uh,” Ace starts, pulling away. “Give me some time to… ‘acquire’ a passport,” he says with a sheepish grin, and after a lifetime of being on the straight and narrow, Felix shouldn't find it endearing.

But he does, because it's his soulmate, and he's prepared to embrace all the baggage that comes with him.

“Let me know if there's any ‘respectable’ individuals that need an anonymous donation,” Felix murmurs, ready to bribe anyone he needs to in order for his lover to follow him back home.

Ace stares at him, gaping a little bit.

“What?”

“Nothing, you're just…” Ace falters. “Literally perfect. Are you for real?”

“You'd be the first person to think of me that way,” Felix snorts but is helpless to stop the heat spreading over his cheeks. “You make me feel…”

‘Happy’? ‘Content’? ‘Hopelessly in love’? ‘Like I’ve finally found my place in the world’?

“Free,” he finally settles on, looking deep into Ace’s eyes and hoping to convey all the things he’s left unsaid.

“Same,” Ace says, looking even happier than usual, an earnest smile on his face. “I though this… soulmate thing would be suffocating—it’s a lot of pressure, you know?”

Felix had never felt that way, but he nods, realizing why Ace would be hesitant. And he knows he’s been a little intense, despite trying to take things slow, but apparently his feelings aren’t unwelcome.

“But everything’s just been pretty damn amazing,” Ace continues with a grin. “It’s weird, but it feels like I’ve known you forever.”

Felix swallows and tries to calm his beating heart, mouth opening and closing and not knowing what to say, what he’s _allowed_ to say in a situation like this.

Ace leans in for a kiss and it’s enough to ground him, bringing his hand up to card through soft hair and melting into the gentle kiss. God, he’s never been this happy, he doesn’t want to lose this—

“I know,” Ace pulls away just enough to whisper against his lips, as if reading his mind. “Me too.”

And then Ace keeps kissing him and his hand clenches into a fist where it’s grabbing Felix’s jacket, and Felix realizes maybe he’s not the only one holding back.


	13. Day 13: Whispers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a short piece for flufftober, no warnings and rated G!

The first thing Felix remembers thinking about Ace was that he was _loud_.

He’d barely gotten out of his first trial before Ace, who he at the time just considered a tactless stranger in a tacky shirt, had started cracking jokes while Dwight was trying to explain their predicament to him. Ace kept butting in until Dwight relented and allowed him to introduce himself, and then he’d even given a flirty wink before Jane dragged him off and urged him to “give the new guy a chance, geez”.

Felix missed parts of Dwight’s explanation even after Ace was gone, because he kept hearing him laugh and egg the others on in whatever game they were playing. Felix’s focus wavered as he tried to figure out how the hell someone could be that _obnoxious_ and unnecessarily _loud_ and…

And so damn _happy_ , even in a place like this.

Even after three months, Ace is still just as obnoxious as ever, but Felix likes to think that because of him, he’s even happier than before. And he’s definitely still loud, just…

Not right now.

“Mm. You’re comfy,” Ace murmurs sleepily against the fabric of his shirt.

“Try to get some rest,” Felix encourages in a whisper, propping himself up on his elbow while his other hand rubs soothing circles on Ace’s back.

“Trying,” Ace grunts, scooting even closer until his face is squashed up against Felix’s chest. “…You smell really nice.”

Felix suppresses a laugh at his lover’s sleepy antics, bringing his hand up to card through soft hair that’s been flattened under a hat for days on end.

“Blood and sweat isn’t exactly my favorite cologne, but to each their own,” Felix murmurs quietly.

“Not that,” Ace whispers sharply, like in offense. “Smells like you. Like _home_.”

Felix’s heart is beating faster from the sweet words and Ace can probably hear it too. Ace has always been open with his compliments, taking every chance he can to flirt with Felix even after they’ve become a couple, but there’s a softer and more subdued side of him Felix rarely gets to see.

Except when he’s ready to fall asleep on his feet, it seems.

“You’re adorable,” Felix whispers and places a kiss into his boyfriend’s hair.

“ _You_ are,” Ace counters groggily, nuzzling into Felix’s chest. “You’re perfect and I love you so much.”

Felix’s heart feels like it’s about to burst from affection. How ironic is it that he had to go through literal hell in order to find that genuine connection to another human being that he’d been looking for his entire life?

“I love you too,” he murmurs, but it seems like Ace has already fallen asleep.

Felix listens to Ace’s even breathing, the crackling of the campfire, and the few conversations some of the others are carrying out in hushed voices. The camp is asleep, everyone getting a much needed mental break from the cycle of violence.

And Felix is happy to join in, cushioning his head on his arm and curling up around Ace.

“Sweet dreams, Liebchen.”


	14. Day 14: Possibilities

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just some self-indulgent, tooth-rotting fluff for flufftober <3 rated T for implied sexual content, the rest is just pure mush.

“How about ‘Müller’?” Felix suggests.

“Holy shit your language is hideous,” Ace snorts at the suggestion and Felix elbows him playfully in the ribs in retaliation.

They’ve been at this for hours. Maybe filling out the paperwork for his new, extremely-totally-not-illegal German identity shouldn’t be this amusing, but some of the names Felix suggests are hilariously different from what he’s used to.

“You can always go with Visconti,” Felix points out.

“I’d rather let the loan sharks keep thinking Ace Visconti is dead,” Ace says, a little disappointed he can’t keep his old identity, but at least he can keep the name “Ace” without raising suspicion. “I doubt they’d look for me here, but I don’t want to put you in unnecessary danger,” he says, leaning in for a quick peck on Felix’s lips.

“Aren’t you chivalrous,” Felix hums, a hand coming up to cup the back of his head and coaxing him right back against the familiar lips.

The important paperwork eventually ends up scattered on the floor when Felix lifts Ace up on the desk and shoves a hand down his pants while murmuring soft words of affection in his ear.

Hours later, Ace stumbles back into the home office with a grin on his face and several red marks on his throat. It’s already dark outside and the house is getting chilly, so he pulls the robe tighter against himself while setting out to find what he’s looking for in the mess of paperwork and clothes strewn on the floor.

He tries to somewhat organize the mess as he looks for his phone, setting the documents on the desk and the clothes into a laundry pile, not particularly eager at the prospect of Felix’s maid walking in on the scene in the morning.

His phone is nowhere to be found and he frowns a little in annoyance, just wanting to get back into bed to cuddle up to the warmth of his sleeping boyfriend. He lifts the last piece of paper before pausing, spotting a post-it note on the back of it.

It’s in Felix’s handwriting, Ace’s name followed by the different German names he’d suggested, and Ace snorts at reading ‘Ace Zimmermann’ because it clashes something horrible. He goes down the list with an amused smirk on his face, until he reads one particular name that makes his heart stop and his eyes widen in shock.

‘Richter’.

Ace is acutely reminded of his childhood, when the girls in his class would giggle to themselves and write their names followed by the boy of their liking’s surname, drawing little hearts around it and quickly closing the notebook when someone walked by.

He feels his face heating up and his heart start hammering in his chest, trying to tell himself that’s _definitely not the case here_ , Felix is just listing the most common names, and it doesn’t mean anything—

But why wouldn’t he say it out loud when they were going through the other names? It would have made a funny joke, even if Ace would have panicked something fierce despite his laughter. Oh God, what if Felix got offended by him making fun of every German name on the list? What if Felix thinks he _doesn’t_ want to marry him?

Shit, does he? They were together in the Entity’s world for three years, they survived absolute hell together, they’re living together, and it’s by far the most serious relationship Ace has ever been in. He never considered marriage and he’s surprised Felix obviously has, at least fleetingly. Mostly, he’s surprised Felix would even think about marrying someone like him.

“What’re you doing?” Felix’s groggy voice snaps him out of it, staring at the note while squatting on the floor like a gremlin, and Ace immediately stands up and hides the piece of paper behind his back.

“Just tidying up!” he says, and it’s not technically a lie, but he’s been absorbed in the note for way longer than the mess took to sort out.

“We have a maid,” Felix snorts before it morphs into a yawn. The word ‘we’ catches Ace’s attention in a way it never has before, and he realizes Felix always talks about _them_ and not just himself. _Their_ house, _their_ life, _their_ shitty jokes.

_Their_ future.

Suddenly, marriage doesn’t seem so far off the table after all.

“I got a little distracted by this,” Ace decides to be upfront, holding the note out to Felix and hoping he doesn’t have to explain the million questions and doubts running through his mind.

Felix blinks sleepily, an adorable gesture, and worry washes over Ace because _oh shit what if he thinks he’s pressuring him into something—_

“Oh,” Felix’s sleepy eyes are now wide awake as he processes the contents of the note, gaze snapping up to Ace’s face. They stare at each other in silence, as if to try to gauge the other’s reaction, so Ace eventually clears his throat and tries to defuse.

“I mean, it was probably just a joke that I read way too much into,” he says with a sheepish grin, giving Felix an easy way out. But Felix isn’t taking the bait, in fact he fidgets self-consciously and averts his eyes.

“I didn’t have the guts to say it before, but…” Felix starts, and Ace holds his breath and steels himself for either rejection or a step so big he’s not sure if he can take it. “I don’t think it matters what name you choose, since hopefully you’ll eventually have mine.”

Oh fuck, oh shit, Ace was _right?_ This is really happening?

“I mean, I’d hope sooner rather than later,” Felix adds, before seeming to regret how forward he’s being, adding a nervous “Ähm—that is, when you want to. _If_ you want to,” and offering a shaky smile.

Ace gapes and holds the stupid post-it note and tries to figure out if this is a proposal, because it sure as hell sounds a lot like one, but he’s only seen them in movies and it’s not some corny grand gesture like he though it should be. And there’s not even a—

“Oh, uhm, give me a moment,” Felix seems to remember something, walking around the desk and fiddling with one of the drawers. And the last of Ace’s brain activity shuts down when Felix pulls out a small satin box, because now there’s no doubt that this is really happening.

Felix opens the box and places it on the desk between them, avoiding a suspicious stain from their earlier activities, and Ace looks at the edged ring in what looks to be platinum, he’s stolen enough of them to recognize the precious metal. It’s elegant and simple and a very Felix thing to pick, but there’s a cutout in the shape of an ace of spades, with a flashy iridescent metal embedded in it. There’s something to be said about the clash of styles, but it’s _just_ like him and Felix, so different from each other but somehow still fitting together unlike anything Ace has ever seen before.

He stares silently at the ring and tries not to get sentimental over how _perfect_ it is, but he takes too long and Felix starts fretting.

“I know it’s not the typical style, I had it made as a gift but then I realized I wanted it to mean _more_ , if you don’t like it I can—” Felix rambles nervously.

“I love it,” Ace interrupts his boyfriend—fiancé?—and hurries to his side, bumping into a corner of the desk in his haste to wrap his arms around Felix. “And I love _you_. How long have you been thinking about this?”

“Pretty much since we got back,” Felix murmurs, nerves effectively soothed from Ace clinging to him. “It’s been sitting in the drawer for months, but I was never sure if you even wanted to…”

‘Marry me’ is left hanging in the air.

“ _Hell yeah_ I want to,” Ace insists, all of his previous doubts disappearing when he looks up at his absolute favorite person in the world that he’d be _honored_ to spend the rest of his life with.

The smile he gets in return is the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen, Felix’s entire face lighting up like this is the best day of his life. Hands tangle in Ace’s hair and eager lips meet his, the kiss periodically interrupted by Felix pulling away and whispering “thank you”, “I love you” and “you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me”.

There’s a wetness on Ace’s cheek and he doesn’t know which one of them is crying, but he’s smiling so fucking wide and pulling Felix as close as he can while kissing him like his life depends on it.

Sure, it’s a far cry from the grandiose proposals in fancy restaurants or rooftop terraces in the movies, as they’re in a dark, somewhat untidy office in the middle of the night. Instead of a suit Ace is dressed in just a robe and still has a post-it note stuck on his hand, and Felix is in wrinkled pajamas with his hair is sticking up in every direction, and in place of a fancy ring in a glass of champagne his is sitting next to a dried pool of cum on the desk.

But there’s nothing anybody could ever say to convince him it’s not the most romantic moment in either of their lives, and he wouldn’t change a thing.


	15. Day 15: Massage (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for kinktober, rated E for the p0rn

Ace is in the middle of trying to ~~bully~~ convince Dwight to give him his brand new skeleton key, when he notices Felix walking back into camp. Naturally, he immediately proceeds to abandon his mission in favor of greeting his boyfriend.

“Hey handsome, how was your trial?” Ace quips with a smile, discreetly running his eyes over his lover’s body to try to spot any injuries in need of medical attention.

“Fine, I had to leave early because she had Rancor. But the others should make it out,” Felix answers, not meeting Ace’s eyes, instead looking at his own arm with a frown while rolling his shoulder.

“Are you hurt?” Ace asks.

“No, I—” Felix starts, but hesitates and rubs at the spot with his other hand. “I’m just really sore, for some reason.”

Ace suspects it’s from him sleeping on Felix’s shoulder all night, but he's not going to implicate himself just yet.

“You want a backrub?” he offers instead, eager at the idea of getting to spend some quality time together while also easing his own guilt over causing Felix discomfort.

“You don’t have to,” Felix insists, but he’s looking bashful, like he already knows Ace will persist until Felix lets himself be spoiled.

And that’s exactly what he does.

“I insist,” Ace smiles, already sitting down on one of the logs and motioning to the space in front of him. “I _might_ have slept on you until your arm fell asleep,” he finally admits.

“Alright then,” Felix says, settling on the ground between his spread legs. “Thank you,” he murmurs, squeezing Ace’s thigh fondly.

The casual touch makes Ace’s heart do a dumb little flip in his chest, thrilled to see his normally reserved boyfriend openly showing affection.

“Just relax, baby,” he purrs, hands coming up to run over Felix’s shoulders. “I’ll take care of you.”

Felix is a little tense at first, and Ace starts carefully, gently working his fingers into the flesh and noticing the entire right side of Felix’s neck seems to be rigid and tense.

“Aww sweetheart, you’re stiff all over!” Ace chastises. “Should have let me do this sooner, especially if it’s my fault.”

“I really doubt you had anything to do with it,” Felix says. “I’m probably just getting—”

“If you say ‘old’, I’m going to kick you,” Ace warns jokingly, not about to listen to _any_ of that from a man nearly a decade younger than him.

“—c _old_?” Felix suggests instead, huffing out a laugh. “Maybe there’s a draft somewhere.”

“Maybe, should probably get that fixed,” Ace smirks, playing along.

The fact that they spend all of their time either outdoors or in derelict buildings is not lost on either of them.

“That feels nice,” Felix sighs when Ace presses a little more firmly, working the muscle with his fingers to try to loosen it up—

He clears his throat as the poor choice of words ring in his mind, reminding him of all the _other_ times he’s used his fingers to help Felix “loosen up”.

“Glad you like it,” Ace quips with a shaky grin.

He experimentally presses harder and Felix _groans_ , head falling forward as his entire body relaxes, and Ace curses and tries to not make everything sexual, but Felix is so _hot_ and his shoulders are so _firm_ and—

Yep, he’s getting hard.

Ace mentally berates his one-track mind and tries to focus on helping Felix, which was the entire point of this session, _not_ thinking with his dick—

“Right there,” Felix says, and it sounds breathless, and when Ace presses at the spot again, right by his spine, Felix lets out an obscene moan.

Ace bites his lip and concentrates all of his willpower on not pushing his dick up against Felix’s back like an animal. Why isn’t anyone saying anything at the display!? Ace looks around at their companions that aren’t even ten feet away, Cheryl and Nancy cluelessly exchanging med-kits while Tapp is playing solitaire right next to them.

“You alright, Ace?” Felix’s voice snaps him back to the task at hand, realizing he’s paused the massage in favor of freaking out. He’s about to make a witty retort, when he sees the ghost of a smirk on Felix’s face where he’s turned his head to look at him over his shoulder.

“You little _demon_ ,” Ace hisses, a grin spreading over his face.

“What’s wrong?” Felix continues, not able to stop the corner of his mouth from quirking up. “You seem a little… _tense_.”

Ace gapes at the absolute _nerve_ of this man, wondering where the hell the stuck-up, straight-as-a-board businessman from just a couple of months ago has disappeared to.

Felix doesn’t protest when Ace drags him into the woods, chuckling at his impatience when Ace pushes him against a tree and presses his clothed dick against his thigh insistently.

“This is _your_ fault,” Ace mumbles against the heated skin of Felix’s neck in between kissing at it. “I was just trying to be _nice_ , and then you have to go and make everything sexual.”

“Oh _no_ ,” Felix emphasizes sarcastically while his fingers are already working on Ace’s belt. “However will you cope?”

“Since when have you been such a little shit?” Ace grins against Felix’s neck, palming at the obvious bulge in his boyfriend’s expensive slacks. “I thought _I_ was supposed to be the insufferable asshole in this relationship.”

“There’s something to be said about bad influences,” Felix chuckles and starts tugging his pants down. “Come on, you can still sass me while getting naked.”

“Oh don’t think I won’t,” Ace snarks and does as requested, hopping out of his pants before starting to unbutton his shirt. When Felix just observes the scene, he quirks an eyebrow. “You’re staying in the suit?”

“For now,” Felix says with an infuriating little smirk, leaning back against the tree and crossing his arms to do nothing but _watch_ as Ace undresses.

Ace decides to play along, trying to quell his own eagerness in favor of slowly stripping out of his button-up and briefs while Felix’s gaze never leaves his body. He even takes off his socks; normally, he’d leave them on to protect his feet from the dirty forest ground, but now they serve as an excellent excuse to slowly bend over.

Felix snorts at the exaggerated display and Ace grins to himself and wiggles his butt for good measure. It’s a good thing his last dregs of modesty died some twenty years ago, “along with the majority of his brain cells” as Felix often likes to joke.

Now fully naked, Ace gets right back up in Felix’s personal space, pressing himself against his lover’s still fully clad form.

“This what you wanted, darling?” Ace purrs into Felix’s ear, tugging on the lobe with his teeth.

“You did a very thorough job,” Felix’s voice is an approving rumble against his own ear, and then there are hands around him that are flipping them around, Felix guiding him to lean against the tree in his stead. “I think I should reward you.”

A warm hand grabs his half-hard dick and Felix wastes no time in starting to kiss down his naked chest. Ace groans in anticipation, his body clearly knowing what’s coming from the way his cock springs back to attention.

Felix doesn’t seem to be in the mood to tease further, immediately engulfing him in a warm mouth and running a tongue over the tip in a way that has Ace’s toes curling into the dirty ground.

Even with Felix being down on his knees and with a cock down his throat, him being fully dressed while Ace is completely naked adds an unexpected thrill to the situation; a reminder that Felix is still the one calling the shots and Ace is just along for the ride.

Ace might be biased, but he finds it incredibly hot.

And then he has trouble thinking at all, because Felix suddenly picks up the pace and Ace has to fight the impulse to thrust into that welcoming mouth, biting his lip to suppress a whine as pleasure washes over him right in time with the movement of his lover’s sinful lips.

He notices Felix’s hands leave him from their position of grabbing his thighs, seeming to fumble with something. Ace absently hopes it’s him finally getting his dick out, he’d love to return the favor after the amazing blowjob.

“I just remembered I owe you a massage,” Felix pulls off of his cock long enough to say instead. Ace only has time to blink in confusion before a now thoroughly slicked finger slides into his ass and immediately locates his prostate, letting out a whimper that morphs into a groan when Felix’s mouth engulfs his dick again.

Ace’s hands grab onto Felix’s hair and hang on for dear life as his lover makes good on his word and proceeds to rub at his prostate and bob on his dick until Ace is a moaning, trembling mess.

“F-fuck, Felix, baby—” Ace whines and throws his head back against the rough bark of the tree, his knees threatening to give out from the dual stimulation.

Felix hums around his dick and then a second finger is pressing into him, wasting no time to join the first in massaging his prostate and making jolts shoot up his spine from the added pressure. That seems to be the last straw for his high-strung body, feeling himself drifting alarmingly close to the edge—

“Coming,” Ace manages to choke out.

Felix’s free hand presses his hip against the tree firmly while lips tighten around the head of his dick and suck _hard_ , and Ace is helpless to do anything but spill into the welcoming mouth with a broken cry.

For a few long seconds Ace sees nothing but stars dancing on the inside of his eyelids, whining softly as Felix keeps rubbing at his insides and gently sucking on his dick, milking him for all he has to give. It feels like he keeps coming forever, and when Felix finally pulls away, his entire body is tired and sore.

Felix releases his hold on Ace’s hip and he nearly slumps to the ground, catching a stray branch to steady himself while he pants to collect his breath.

“Sorry, Liebchen,” Felix is quick to apologize and help steady him, offering an apologetic kiss as he holds him against the tree. “I didn’t realize how wobbly that would make you.”

“’S okay,” Ace slurs tiredly, smiling dopily against his boyfriend’s lips. “That was the best damn massage of my life.”

“Glad to hear it,” Felix smiles in self-satisfaction and Ace doesn’t even have the heart to tease him about being a cocky bastard. In his book, the smugness is 100% deserved.

“Did you want to…?” Ace asks, hand inching towards Felix’s groin, not about to neglect his lover even if he’s too tired to stay on his feet.

“Later,” Felix says, grabbing Ace’s hand in favor of lacing their fingers together in a sweet gesture. “Right now I could go for a nap.”

“Read my mind,” Ace smirks, bringing their intertwined hands to his face to place a kiss on Felix’s.

Ace manages to dress himself and then they’re off to find one of the smaller campsites the survivors sometimes use for sleep. Ace spots Zarina and Quentin already dozing off in opposite corners of the scattered blankets, glancing at Felix in a silent question whether they should disturb them or not.

When his boyfriend merely shrugs, they quietly make themselves comfortable in the middle of the makeshift bedroom.

Felix winces as he turns on his side to face him, and Ace finally recalls their earlier dilemma.

“How’s the shoulder?” Ace whispers while pushing Felix to lay on his back, even climbing over him to curl up against his lover’s good side to not put strain on the injury.

“It’s okay, don’t worry,” Felix reassures quietly, placing a quick peck on his forehead. “I, uhm… may have figured out what’s causing it.”

“Really? What?” Ace asks curiously. When Felix doesn’t answer, merely quirking an eyebrow while the corner of his mouth twitches up, Ace wracks his brain for any physical strain Felix might have put on his arm throughout the last half an hour.

Finally, his boyfriend raises his hand and wiggles his fingers, and a lightbulb goes off in Ace’s head. He stifles a laugh into Felix’s neck and hopes he doesn’t wake the two others. Of all the things—

“Guess I owe you many more backrubs,” Ace teases. “We should make it into a daily routine.”

“You don’t have to,” Felix, predictably, tries to decline the offer because he’s stupidly humble like that.

“I’m not going to be the one to explain to everyone when it gets so bad you can only do gens one-handed,” Ace counters. “I get to touch your amazingly sexy shoulders, _and_ keep you in top… uh, _massage_ condition? Win-win,” he grins.

“Well, when you put it that way…” Felix starts with a smirk.

“I knew you’d come around!” Ace grins victoriously.

“For the love of God Felix, shut him up already!” Zarina suddenly snaps from behind him, now awake and grumpy.

“Yeah, nobody wants to hear that,” Quentin grumbles from the other side.

“Well, since we’re all awake, how about a game—” Ace starts, not feeling all that tired anymore, more than ready to entertain the group with a card game or the like.

“Sorry,” Felix interrupts, slapping a hand over his mouth to silence him and apologetically glancing at Zarina who merely huffs in annoyance.

Ace wants to protest, but then Felix is turning on his good side and pulling Ace impossibly close to him, and he can’t really argue when he has his boyfriend’s firm chest pressed up against the side of his face.

“Let’s get some rest,” Felix murmurs in a comforting rumble and fondly pets his hair and Ace is out like a light in a few seconds.


	16. Day 16: Bad day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for whumptober, rated M for implied emotional abuse, cheating and some violence. also the chapter the fic is named after!

It was official; this was the worst day of Felix’s life.

It shouldn’t have been. He should have been happy, maybe a little shocked and nervous, but definitely excited. _Not_ anxious, scared and downright spiteful like he felt right now.

His girlfriend was pregnant. They hadn’t been trying, but she was excited to tell him regardless, already thinking of baby names and giving Felix no room to voice any of his doubts. He knew this was what he claimed he’d always wanted, what he knew his parents wanted for him, to continue the family name since he was the last of his line.

He took another swig of the foul-tasting beer and wondered if she’d done it on purpose. She’d been not-so-subtly hinting at marriage for months, and Felix had always brushed her off. Maybe this was her taking matters into her own hands, forcing Felix to commit to her or drag down both his family name and professional image for having a child out of wedlock.

He didn’t want to marry her because she always seemed way more fond of his money than Felix himself, and he didn’t want to have kids because…

Well. He hated children.

He probably should have brought up that particular piece of information sooner, but he wasn’t sure it would have even made a difference. Not to his parents, not to his girlfriend, and certainly not to the ungodly amount of distant relatives and business associates who kept bugging him about settling down and starting a family.

Because, for some reason, dedicating the last twenty years of his life to doing what other people wanted him to do wasn’t enough.

He’d stupidly believed it would get better. That the twelve-hour work days and countless all-nighters on uninspiring projects would eventually pay off, when in reality all it had lead to were more boring projects. He’d thought buying his girlfriend expensive gifts and taking her on weekly dates followed by the obligatory weekly sex would make them fall in love, but instead she was pushing him into commitments he wasn’t ready for.

He downed the rest of the beer and tried to numb out the suffocating feeling of being _trapped_. He was doomed to keep living his shitty life exactly the way others dictated, and there was nothing he could do to change his fate.

Maybe that’s why he’d chosen this bar. It wasn’t the usual high-end, after-hour cocktail bar next to his office where everyone would recognize him. It was a shitty sports bar owned and frequented by foreigners, where nobody would approach him to congratulate him on the “good news” after his girlfriend e-mailed his entire contacts list in her excitement.

He debated getting another beer, maybe finally being able to pick one that didn’t taste like piss. God, how sad was his life that the biggest act of rebellion he could come up with was getting drunk on cheap beer in a bad part of town?

Felix clutched the glass tighter in his hand, frustrated at his life but also at himself, how he was unable to do anything but play right into everyone else’s plans. Fuck, he needed to do something different, something he’d never even considered would be in the realm of possibilities for him. But what?

He looked around the bar, seeing a group of backpackers animatedly chatting in what sounded like Spanish. He could go travelling, but that wouldn’t accomplish much except buy him a little bit of time. Not to mention his girlfriend would guilt him until he let her come along.

He could always get blackout drunk and puke his guts out in the bathroom. Maybe get into a bar fight. Try to get his hands on some drugs. Hire a prostitute.

Unfortunately none of those things seemed even remotely more thrilling than the bland beer he’d been drinking the entire night.

Felix sighed and buried his face into his hands. For forty years, he’d kept telling himself he wasn’t like everyone else, that he’d do something meaningful in his life, that he was a risk taker and not a conformer.

And he still _would_ ; he just didn’t know _what_. If he only got a sign—

The door to the bar slammed open and Felix snapped his head up from the noise, his table rattling from the impact of the door hitting the wall.

There was a man, his grey hair and cheap suit both wet from the autumn rain, clutching something under his arm while panting like he’d just run a half marathon. He hurried to close the door, and Felix didn’t mean to stare, but it was the most exciting thing to happen all night.

The man caught Felix’s eye and gave a quick grin.

“You saw nothing,” he offered before running up to the bar.

“Don’t tell me ya fuckin’—” the bartender started, clear annoyance on his features.

“Oops, gotta run, I was never here!” the man offered good-naturedly before hopping over the bar and disappearing into the back.

“Ace for _fuck’s_ sake!” the bartender cursed, yelling at the doorway to what had to be a back room or kitchen. Still, he made no move to follow him, instead sighing in agitation and aggressively started cleaning a couple of pint glasses.

Felix realized three things at once; one, the new customer screamed trouble. Two, he clearly knew the bartender. And three, Felix was intrigued.

He made his way to the bar with his empty glass, placing a ten euro bill on the worn wood that earned him a fresh glass of beer in only a couple of seconds. He appreciated that the bartender hadn’t tried to make small talk during the entire evening, and lamented the fact that he had to break the silence.

“Who is your friend?” Felix asked, trying to ignore the self-consciousness that always surfaced when he had to subject the world to his extremely obvious German accent.

“'Friend' is a strong word,” the bartender huffed in annoyance, though it seemed to be directed at the person they were talking about and not Felix. “'A pest who keeps comin' back like a boomerang no matter how many times I kick 'im out' sounds more fitting.”

Felix hummed in acknowledgement and sipped at his beer, deciding to sit down at the bar instead of returning to his table.

“He seems interesting,” Felix mused, trying to fish more information about the man.

Instead of humoring him, the bartender stopped cleaning the glasses and gave him an incredulous stare.

“You've gotta be fucking kidding me,” he deadpanned. “The hell's a guy like _you_ see in a rat like 'im?”

“That wasn't what I meant,” Felix insisted, staring at his glass in embarrassment. He was just curious, he wasn't… interested, at least not _that_ way. God, why could he never communicate properly? This is why he never tried anything new.

He heard the bartender sigh long and loud, like this wasn't the first time he'd had to put up with a similar situation.

“Look mate, whatever yer thinkin', _don't_ ,” he offered, like that was supposed to help Felix at all. “Guy's way more trouble than 'es worth, an' he sure as hell ain't here to make friends.”

Felix didn't have time to reply, not that he even knew what he would have said, before the door slammed open once again and heavy footsteps stomped into the bar.

“Oi!” the bartender shouted in annoyance. “Don't go draggin' mud into my bar!"

“ _Where is he?_ ” one of the new patrons demanded in German, and his voice was threatening enough to make Felix glance over his shoulder at the new arrivals.

He saw a group of four men that looked like bad news, their cheap clothing and poorly made tattoos making Felix think of some lowly local gang.

“Read the sign, mate,” the bartender scoffed, pointing at a metal plaque in the style of a road sign that said ‘Service in English only’.

“ _What a fucking moron_ ,” one of the thugs commented, not even attempting to switch languages.

“ _We know he's here!_ ” the man at the front barked out and proceeded to slam a fist against the bar.

“I got no bloody clue what yer talkin' about!” the bartender claimed. “But if yer gonna come to _my_ bar an' start a fight, so help me—”

" _Let's just beat him up!_ ” one of the men was getting impatient.

“ _For the last time, where is he!?_ ” one of the thugs surged forward and grabbed the bartender by his collar.

“You've got the fuckin' wrong place, I dun know shit about what ya even want!” the bartender, to his credit, didn't even bat an eye. Then again, it looked like he could easily hold his own in a fight.

Felix heard a gasp and noticed one of the Spanish kids cower closer to the corner they were sitting in, observing the scene with fear in her eyes.

The tension in the air seemed like it was about to snap, and instead of making Felix want to bolt into the safety of his mansion, it made his adrenaline start pumping.

This was what he needed. A thrill.

“ _You heard the man_ ,” Felix raised his voice, finally turning to address the group. “ _You're in the wrong place_.”

“ _Shut the fuck up, this doesn't involve you!_ ” one of them eloquently responded.

“ _It started involving me when you barged in and ruined my night_ ,” Felix explained calmly despite feeling his palms start sweating from nervousness, years of faking an unphased persona finally coming to use.

“ _Okay, the fuck's your problem!?_ ” the guy who seemed to be the leader demanded, finally letting go of the bartender in favor of looming over Felix threateningly.

“ _I_ ** _said_** ,” he emphasized, slowly lifting his pint glass to take a sip of his drink and flash his ring with the family insignia. “ _You've got the wrong place_.”

There was a moment of silence when all Felix heard was his own heart beating in his ears, keeping his expression neutral and looking at the thugs like they were nothing more than a fleck of dirt on his expensive suit. Hopefully, they'd recognize the symbol, even if the Richters hadn’t been involved in the local underworld for years, not after the disappearance of his parents.

“ _The fuck is he on about?_ ” one of the men, who looked to be the youngest, demanded. “ _Let's just beat them both up and_ —”

“ _Shut up_ ,” the leader barked, glancing at Felix fleetingly. “ _We seem to have gotten lost on the way_.”

Felix couldn’t help the smug smile.

“ _Happens to the best of us_ ,” he said.

The group slowly started slinking out of the bar without further complaints, with Felix's eyes following them the entire time as if daring them to protest.

“Sorry for bother,” one of them even offered to the bartender in questionable English before the door closed after them.

“I'll be damned,” the bartender huffed and crossed his arms, giving Felix a look that could generously be described as somewhat impressed. Felix offered a shaky smile in return before he focused all his attention on staring at the surface of the bar and trying not to tremble from fear as the adrenaline left his body. He hoped it wasn’t obvious he was taking unnecessarily deep breaths and that cold sweat was running down his back under the suit.

That had been the most idiotic thing he had ever done. It was stupid, it was dangerous, and unnecessary and—

And he'd never felt such a rush of absolute _victory_ before.

There was a thud as a beer was placed in front of him, and he glanced up to see the bartender smirking at him.

“ _It's on the house_ ,” he said in a heavily accented but otherwise fluent German.

Well. It seemed this night was just full of surprises.

Soon after, Felix found himself sitting in a corner booth nursing his two beers. For the first time in what felt like forever, he felt _good_ , and it wasn’t just from the alcohol buzzing in his system.

He’d proved to himself that he had balls. He was one wrong move away from ending up in a bar fight, and even that thought didn't make him cower in fear like it would have before. Despite never being in a fight before, his confidence was soaring, and he liked to imagine him and the bartender could have easily taken the four thugs.

And then his night only got better as a handsome stranger slid down into the opposite side of the booth.

“So, King told me you saved my ass just now,” the man said with a charming smile, casually leaning closer and propping his chin up on his elbow like they were old friends catching up.

It took Felix longer than he'd like to recognize the man as the one that caught his attention earlier. Without the baseball cap, sunglasses and cheap suit jacket, he cleaned up rather well, dressed in a simple light pink button-up and jeans. Slightly messy, silver hair was a stark contrast to the mischievous brown eyes and almost youthful, cocky smirk on his face.

Felix suddenly realized why the bartender thought he was interested in more than just the man's colorful personality.

“I suppose that's true,” Felix said after a way longer silence than was socially acceptable, but his companion was courteous not to mention anything.

“Well, whether you meant to or not, you have my thanks!” the man grinned good-naturedly. “I would have bought you a beer, but I see David's already got you covered,” he added, gesturing to the two pints where Felix was still working through his first.

“Yes, it's…” Felix started, debating whether he should be honest about his distaste for the drink or not. Fuck it, drunk and brave had worked earlier. “A shame it doesn't make it taste any better.”

The man barked out a laugh and Felix smiled at the success of his joke.

“I know, right?” his companion snickered. “I keep telling him to mix it up, maybe get some nice wines too, but he insists on importing that awful stuff the Brits call beer.”

Felix smiled politely, not knowing what to add to the statement. Regardless of what the bartender—David?—had claimed before, the two definitely seemed to be friends.

“I'm sorry, where are my manners!” the man suddenly seemed to realize, offering his hand over the table. “I'm Ace.”

“Felix,” Felix replied, returning the handshake firmly, like his father and numerous career coaches had taught him.

“So, Felix,” Ace continued, retracting his hand but leaning over the table even further. “What brings you here? I think I'd remember seeing someone like you before.”

Was that flirting? It had been so long since anyone had showed any interest in Felix, he couldn’t even recognize what was just casual conversation, too used to business world small talk about the stock market and someone's secretary's family.

“I needed a change,” Felix said, before realizing he probably shouldn't be revealing too much. “—of scenery,” he hastily added.

Ace regarded him silently for a few heartbeats and Felix gulped down some beer to try not to fret under the scrutinizing gaze.

“Scenery, huh?" Ace hummed. "Seen anything you like so far?”

Okay, that _had_ to be flirting. Right? Felix stared at Ace's face, but the other wasn’t giving anything away. And Felix thought _he_ was good a keeping a straight face.

“Maybe,” he answered simply, keeping eye contact much longer than appropriate on purpose.

Ace didn't look away and Felix wondered if he was the only one who noticed the tension in the air.

He always sucked at flirting, even in his native tongue, and now he had to do it in broken English. He thought he'd been pretty obvious, but he still wasn’t sure if Ace was just being friendly. Maybe he wasn’t even into men.

Well, to be fair Felix didn't think he was either, university time experimentation aside. There was something about this particular night, like he was desperate to prove to himself that he was still capable of making decisions for himself.

He’d always thought he wouldn't cheat, but he also knew that if Ace offered, he wasn’t going to say no. If this was the only thing in his life he still had control over, he was going to make the most of it, and he no longer cared if that made him a bad person.

“You know, I've stayed in a bunch of different hotels in the area while I've been here,” Ace mentioned out of the blue, and Felix furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “There's a pretty good one just down the street.”

Felix swallowed, at last realizing what the other was getting at.

“Really?” he asked, trying to mask his suddenly surfacing nerves.

“Yup. Kinda cozy, very… discreet,” Ace chirped casually, like he was talking about the weather and not propositioning a stranger.

Felix cleared his throat and shoved a hand in his pocket, managing to fish out a crumpled twenty euro bill despite his sweaty palms. He slapped the money on the table, hoping the tip would convey his gratitude to David for setting him up for the best night of his life.

Finally, he stood up from the booth and offered Ace a nervous smile that probably made it glaringly obvious just how eager he was.

“Lead the way."


	17. Day 17: Yours

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tooth-rotting fluff for a flufftober prompt, rated G and no warnings <3

Felix blinks awake as light floods into the room, seeing the sun shining in through the blinds both of them forgot to close last night. It's a cozy autumn morning, the orange leaves of the trees in the garden slowly swaying from the gentle breeze.

There's a chill in the room and Felix idly makes a mental note to adjust the thermostat in preparation for winter. But right now, he's content with pulling the duvet up to his neck and scooting closer to the source of the warm arm draped over his waist.

He doesn't stop until his back is flush against Ace's chest, his lover stirring slightly in his sleep. Then there's a pleased hum and Ace tightens his hold around him, bringing his hand up to Felix's chest to hug him even closer while burying his face against his shoulder.

Felix lets out a happy sigh and basks in the affection even after all these years.

It's unbelievable to think that his decision to flirt back with the loudmouth in camp, in another world ten years ago, would lead them to this situation. He intertwines his fingers with Ace's under the covers, thumb running over the wedding ring. It's worn, with scratches and a black spot from where it fell in the fireplace some years ago, and that incident landed them in the ER after Felix's idiot husband dove into the fire with his bare hand. Felix has wanted to get the ring fixed for years now, but Ace always protests, saying the scars add character; just like with them.

Every now and then, Felix's shoulder still stings with phantom pain of a meat hook even after all these years. He has mixed feelings about his time in the Entity's realm; on one hand, the psychological damage will probably never heal completely, but on the other, he'd still be stuck in a directionless life and a loveless relationship without it.

Ace starts snoring softly against his neck and Felix smiles, deciding that today he'd be grateful for what the experience gave him instead of grieving what it took from him.

He looks at the clock on the nightstand, the one that makes Ace call him an old man for owning an alarm clock, and sees it's only seven. It's a Sunday and they don't have anywhere to be for hours, free to spend a lazy morning together.

Felix shifts his attention to the photo frame next to the clock. It's a picture of Ace with his daughter, and it's Felix's absolute favorite, even if it's a little blurry because he's a downright terrible photographer.

The photo is from a picnic a couple of years ago, where Klara is sitting in front of Ace, both of them smiling brightly. His daughter is dressed in what was then her brand new rabbit sweater, a gift they received by mail from a certain Chinese bunny enthusiast. It was a little too big but Klara didn't care, practically living in the thing even though it drooped off her narrow shoulders. Ace held the long ears of the hood up above her head, giving the camera his most dazzling smile, his sunglasses pushed up into his hair and causing stray locks to stick up in different directions.

He huffs in annoyance, reminded of the fact that Ace still has all of his hair while Felix has already started balding. He tries not to feel self-conscious about the changes is his appearance, not caring that Ace's arm is resting on the couple of kilograms of chub around his midsection he's added over the years. He realizes it's not just him though, neither of them being in as good of a shape as they were ten years ago, both enjoying a good meal and a glass of nice wine maybe more than they should.

The hand shifts against his own and Felix clasps it tighter, feeling wrinkles and raised veins where there weren’t any years ago, a reminder of their aging bodies.

But Felix doesn't care about the age and comfortable lifestyle showing on Ace, and from the way his husband still insists of flirting with him and touching him every chance he gets, neither does Ace.

Feeling particularly sentimental, Felix decides to make them breakfast in bed. He gently untangles himself from Ace's embrace, scooting over to the side of the bed—

“Just where do you think you're going?” Ace mumbles, voice muffled by the pillow his face is buried in while his hands blindly grope around for Felix and finally settle around his waist.

“To make us breakfast,” Felix replies, half-heartedly swatting at the arms grabbing at him.

“Nuh-uh,” Ace protests and pulls him back into bed.

“And here I was trying to be nice,” Felix laments, now sitting next to Ace on the bed with his husband's face buried against his thigh. “Aren't you hungry?”

“I'll eat you if I get hungry,” Ace says, and then pretends to chomp down on the meat of Felix's leg through his pajama pants. “Mm. Sweet, just like always.”

Felix chuckles at his husband's antics, starting with the cheesy lines before he’s even woken up properly.

“I'll go get the coffee started, at least,” Felix says, petting Ace's hair. “You get some rest.”

“Nooo, five more minutes,” Ace whines, hugging him tighter. “Just get back under the covers for a little while, and then you can do your boring adult stuff later.”

Felix is sure most of their lives consist of ‘boring adult stuff’, but he humors Ace, happy to take advantage of the lazy morning to cuddle up to his partner.

“You do make a convincing argument,” Felix teases as he slides under the duvet and immediately gets an armful of sleepy husband.

“Should've read the fine print in the contract before you married me,” Ace teases, and Felix can't see the grin but he hears it in his voice.

“I did, and I don't recall there being a section about morning cuddles,” Felix shoots back.

“It's written in invisible ink,” Ace grins. “'Husbands are legally required to provide cuddles upon request'. Now you're mine for the next ten minutes.”

“I thought it was five?” Felix points out.

“It goes up by five every time you're a smartass,” Ace shoots back. “That's fifteen, now.”

“So that means you'd owe me…” Felix pretends to consider the ungodly amount of times Ace has been a little shit during their marriage. “About three hundred years. Huh, that's a long time to have someone at my mercy.”

“Joke's on you, I'm into that shit,” Ace smirks, finally looking up from snuggling into Felix’s chest. “Now shut up and give me a smooch, cuddle slave.”

Felix laughs and does as requested, leaning down to claim warm lips in a soft kiss, his heart fluttering just as stupidly as when he first did this ten years ago.

“Mine,” Ace murmurs against his lips when they pull away, tightening his embrace around Felix.

“Yours,” Felix agrees with a smile.


	18. Day 18: Panic attacks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt for whumptober, rated T and warning for,,, well, panic attacks.

Ace is having a rather good day, all things considered. He finishes his second generator of the trial while Feng is still doing a phenomenal job at being chased by the killer, and he even has time to stop and search a chest in good conscience.

He picks up a broken key with a worn brass token, which isn’t ideal but he’ll add it to his ever growing pile of junk back at camp anyway.

In the time it takes him to find a generator, the Nurse has finally managed to down and hook Feng, but someone saves her right after and the chase beings anew. Ace would guess the rescuer was David and that he used borrowed time to make sure the gamer made it out, since he can’t see Felix being ~~stupid~~ bold enough to unhook in the killer’s face like that.

With the Nurse’s distant screeches providing some pleasant background noise—considering it’s not Ace she’s chasing—he gets to work on a nearly completed generator by one of the exits. If he finishes it before the killer comes to check, it marks their fourth completed objective of the trial, and it looks like they’ll have an easy escape provided she doesn’t have the obnoxious totem perk to ensure an instant down after the gates are powered.

At first, Ace doesn’t question why someone would have abandoned the nearly completed machine, but just before he connects the last two wires, he hesitates. Will this be the last generator on this side of the map? Maybe someone wanted to leave it because it’s by an exit?

He gets up to look around a bit, trying to spot any other nearby generators, but then he hears it.

A sob.

Ace frowns in worry and keeps looking around, not seeing any signs of life. Did he imagine it? Feng is the only one injured, and her moans of pain can be heard from halfway across the map. The girl is a lot of things, but quiet sure as hell isn’t one of them.

He remembers the key in his pocket, a normally useless item with an underwhelming add-on that will allow him to see his nearby teammates for only a couple of seconds. But right now, it’s exactly what he needs, and as he channels the item, he eventually makes out a human form cowering in the corner next to the exit gate.

The key’s power dies out but Ace doesn’t care, carefully approaching his distressed teammate.

He should have guessed who he’s going to find just by basic deduction, as Feng is still keeping the Nurse busy somewhere in the Asylum and David is one to push forward through sheer stubbornness. It still takes him by surprise to notice Felix, normally so calm and collected, huddled in on himself with his knees drawn close to his chest and his head buried in his hands.

Ace suddenly feels very out of place, and he realizes he could just slowly back away and Felix probably wouldn’t even know he was ever there.

But Felix doesn’t seem to be just taking a mental break from the trial, he looks to be struggling. His entire body is trembling and he’s taking sharp, wheezy breaths, bordering on hyperventilating.

And Ace might not be the best at offering comfort, but he sure as hell is going to try.

“Hey,” he offers softly as not to spook Felix, but from the way Felix’s head snaps up in surprise, he’s not successful. Shit, he’s never seen the guy so upset, looking utterly broken with tears and snot running down his face and taking short, shaky breaths. It make’s Ace’s cold, selfish heart clench in sympathy and he slowly kneels down on Felix’s level, far enough away to hopefully not feel like he’s cornering him. “How you holding up?”

That’s probably the dumbest thing he could have asked, but at least it makes Felix react, quickly wiping at his face and averting his eyes.

“F-fine, sorry—” Felix starts, but then his trembling voice breaks on another sob and he hides his face behind his hand in shame as another wave of what Ace assumes to be a panic attack hits.

Ace has never been good at dealing with emotions, his or others’, but he’s learned a lot after being swept up by the Entity and trying to keep everyone in their little group happy and healthy. He knows that Dwight needs to be held when his anxiety surfaces, and although that position is usually reserved for Jake, Ace has been the body for Dwight to cling to on a few occasions when others were unavailable. On the other hand, when something triggers Quentin’s PTSD, the boy wants nothing more than to be left alone, and even the smallest touch will send him spiraling deeper into his own head.

“It’s alright,” Ace says, trying to keep his voice calm and even offering an encouraging smile. “We’ve all been there.”

That seems to calm Felix down some, so Ace optimistically deduces that maybe his presence does help after all.

This is a vastly different situation from Dwight or Quentin, though. Where Ace mostly sees himself as a somewhat shitty parental figure to the boys, he’s been openly flirting with Felix ever since the other got here. And despite Felix sometimes awkwardly flirting back, he fully expected their relationship to stay at the casual friendship level.

But this is huge step, and if Ace manages to comfort him without hiding behind shitty jokes and Felix allows himself to be vulnerable, maybe that’s a sign they could eventually be something more.

“Just say the word and I’ll be on my way,” Ace starts. “But I also have a pretty good shoulder to lean on, if that’s something you think might help.”

Felix glances at him and Ace tries to keep the smile on his face despite his own nerves surfacing and mixing with the worry for Felix already there.

“Are you sure?” Felix asks, voice nowhere near steady but at least being able to form a complete sentence.

“Of course!” Ace reassures without even knowing which option Felix is referring to.

And then Felix looks back at the ground and curls in on himself further and Ace tries not to be disappointed. He’s already moving to get up, an apology ready on his tongue, when Felix shuffles along the exit gate wall to make room for Ace to join him.

The grin that forms on his face might not be the most appropriate considering the circumstances, but Felix doesn’t protest, in fact he immediately buries his face against Ace’s shoulder and clasps his arm in a death grip as soon as he takes a seat next to him.

Felix takes shallow breaths against him and Ace doesn’t care that his shirt is getting stained with wet tears and snot, suddenly hit with how _intimate_ the entire situation is. His own nerves resurface and his free hand hovers awkwardly in the air, not sure if it’s appropriate to touch the distressed man.

But in the end, he’s a gambler, and so he gambles, placing a hesitant hand in Felix’s hair as he remembers the other is usually messing with it when he’s nervous.

When the only reaction he gets is Felix gripping his arm tighter, he carefully starts running his hand through the locks, slightly disheveled from where Felix has no doubt been doing the same.

“It’s okay,” Ace says, trying to keep his voice steady and hoping Felix can’t hear his heart hammering in his chest. “You’re okay.”

“I’m going to get crows,” Felix chokes out through the tears.

“Doesn’t matter,” Ace reassures, discreetly looking up to try to spot the birds that should already be circling above Felix’s head. “Feng and David are keeping her busy. She’s got no reason to come here.”

Ace frowns as he realizes can neither see nor hear the Entity’s spies, despite knowing their captor’s rules clearly state the birds should be giving away their location by now.

The key sits heavy in his pocket and he suddenly realizes maybe the Entity _wanted_ him to find Felix. Regardless of how Ace feels about the otherworldly being, he knows it’s not satisfied unless the trial has been what it considers “fair”. Maybe it’s giving them a time-out until Felix is in shape to continue, and maybe that’s why Feng still hasn’t been caught, despite being injured against one of the strongest killers.

“Seems like the crows are on their lunch break,” Ace voices his observation in hopes of reassuring Felix. “We’ve got all the time in the world.”

Not surprisingly, the knowledge that he’s not on a time limit seems to calm Felix down some, and the grip on Ace’s arm loosens as the sharp breaths slowly turn into more deliberate ones.

“That’s it, deep breaths,” Ace murmurs and keeps petting Felix’s hair since it seems to be working, or at least not making the situation worse. “You’re going to be fine.”

He has no idea how long they sit there together, with Felix slowly coming back to himself and Ace offering generic encouraging sentiments he hopes are somewhat helpful, lost in their own little bubble while the trial carries on without them.

When Felix eventually pulls away, Ace feels disappointed, even if he finally gets some much needed blood flow to his arm that has fallen asleep a while ago.

“Fuck,” Felix sighs and leans his head back against the tiled wall with a dull ‘thud’. “I’m sorry you had to see that.”

“I’m not,” Ace offers with a small grin. “But I’m sorry you had to _go through_ that.”

“I didn’t expect one in the middle of a trial,” Felix says, letting Ace is on the fact that this wasn’t a one-off. “Thank you. You, um, helped. A lot,” Felix says bashfully, and Ace has to resist the urge to pull him back into his arms.

“Don’t mention it,” he says instead, and when Felix just gives him an adorable, tiny smile, can’t resist adding a cheeky “There’s a lot worse ways to spend a trial”.

“I’d say being a liability and making a complete fool of myself isn’t something I’m eager to repeat,” Felix mutters, but he’s still smiling, so Ace hopes he’s not still embarrassed.

“Honestly, I’m surprised I didn’t make the situation worse,” Ace jokes. “Or that my brain didn’t implode on itself from not making jokes or flirting for five minutes.”

“You were perfect,” Felix says so earnestly it takes Ace completely off guard, and _he’s not blushing he’s just suddenly really warm_ _okay_ — “I should get back to my generator,” Felix seems to remember, looking over Ace’s shoulder in the direction of the machine. “I’ve wasted enough of everyone’s time for today.”

“If there’s anything we have plenty of, it’s time,” Ace reassures, pushing himself off of the wall and ready to join the trial.

He offers a hand to help Felix up, and it makes him smile when Felix only hesitates for a split second before accepting the gesture.

“You know, we should do this more often,” Ace says with a grin as he pulls Felix up on his feet. “I mean, preferably without the panicking. I didn’t mind but it didn’t exactly look like you were having the time of your life.”

Felix huffs out a small laugh at the statement, and then he squeezes Ace’s hand that’s still clasped in his.

“I’d like that.”


	19. Day 19: Cockwarming (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short drabble for kinktober, rated M for mild sexual content, warning for covid mentions!

Felix had protested when his business partner suggested they follow the government's recommendations of working from home. They were only a small architecture studio with fifteen people and he didn't think it would make an impact on the spread of the pandemic, but she insisted it was to set a good example and protect their families, so Felix eventually relented.

He didn't think he'd be able to focus as well outside of his office, all his previous experience with working from home being from pulling all-nighters in front of his laptop or e-mailing impatient international clients in the middle of the night.

But he'd been proven wrong. He'd underestimated just how impactful getting an extra hour of sleep could be, getting to skip the commute entirely. He also didn't have to walk around in a suit all day, able to work in a t-shirt and jeans unless one of his clients insisted on a video call, in which case he'd style his hair and put on a presentable button-up and suit jacket for the camera, but be sitting in sweats and slippers below the desk.

He was also taking much more frequent breaks, his housekeeper periodically reminding him to stretch his legs and stay hydrated. All in all, he doesn’t think he’s ever been this relaxed while still clocking a full 40 hours a week.

And that wasn't even the best part.

He's in the middle of tweaking some settings in the rendering software, needing to adjust the lighting in a couple of promotional images for his newest project, when there’s shuffling and an impatient groan from under his desk.

“Did I say you could move?” Felix tuts, reaching a hand below the desk to tangle in ruffled hair that's grown a little too long during lockdown.

No, the best part of working from home was getting to spend quarantine with his boyfriend.

The lazy mornings, shared meals, and fleeting touches and quick kisses throughout the day made sure he was always in a good mood when working.

But he especially enjoyed incorporating all the situations that were _extremely_ not safe for work into his work day.

Like right now, when he leans back in his chair and is greeted by the sight of his boyfriend's mouth stuffed full of cock, even if said boyfriend is looking up at him with an impatient glare.

Patience had never been Ace's strong suit, but since they now had plenty of time on their hands, Felix liked to see just how far he could push.

“Five more minutes,” Felix says, brushing a thumb over Ace's stubbled cheek. “And then I'll make it up to you. Promise.”

Seeming happy with his answer, Ace hums in acknowledgement and settles back between his legs, arms resting on his thighs. His lips close more firmly around the shaft of Felix’s dick, but he's no longer moving, obediently staying in place and providing a wonderful warmth around his half-hard cock.

“That's it, you're doing great,” Felix offers in encouragement and gets a demanding pinch to his thigh in retaliation, a silent reminder to get on with it.

Felix smirks and focuses his attention back to what he was doing _above_ the desk, now even more motivated than before to get the work done quickly.

Yeah, Felix could definitely get used to working from home.


	20. Day 20: Scars (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for cocktober, rated M for mild sexual content, no warnings.

“Where’s this one from?” Felix asks, running his finger over a faint scar on Ace’s neck.

They’re sharing a quiet moment away from the campfire, his lover laying on the dirty forest floor while Felix sits next to him and leisurely explores the expanse of skin.

Ace has his hands propped behind his head and a lazy smile on his face, not seeming in any hurry to get dressed, a thin layer of sweat on his skin still drying after their earlier activities.

“Hag’s mori,” Ace says, but then it quickly morphs into a smirk. “My first trial, and she couldn’t keep her hands off of me.”

Felix nods in recognition, his own set of much fresher scars from the Ghostface’s mori throbbing dully on his back from phantom pain. He doesn’t know why the Entity insisted on making those particular scars more permanent than others, as if the psychological damage from meeting an untimely demise by a killers’ hand wasn’t bad enough.

His hand moves down Ace’s chest, skipping the nasty, jagged scar just below his lover’s ribcage, knowing all too well how the Hag’s clawed hand punches into one’s gut to collect organs to feed on. Felling a wave of nausea hit him, Felix continues to a small scar on Ace’s side.

“What about this one?” he asks, fingers running over the slightly raised texture of what looks to be a stab wound.

“Oh, that’s from before,” Ace says, leaning up to look at the mark. “I pissed off the wrong crowd, and they—hah, stop _tickling_ me!” he huffs out an involuntary laugh, lightly slapping Felix’s hand from running circles over the scar.

“Sorry,” Felix offers with an apologetic smile, hand settling on Ace’s hip while he waits for him to finish the story.

“They jumped me, but I managed to get away. Almost punctured a lung, too; good thing I’m lucky,” Ace grins.

Felix’s hand tightens around Ace’s hip as he pictures him bleeding out alone in a dirty alley, thankful for whatever crazy coincidence that has allowed him to make it this far despite his reckless lifestyle. This world might not be what either of them would have ever wanted, but at least they’re still alive.

He leans in to kiss the very obvious and by now very familiar circular scar on Ace’s shoulder that doesn’t require any questioning. The painful hooks are part of their everyday routine, but it’s the harsh reality of their new lives.

“Don’t worry, sweet cheeks. I’m not going anywhere,” Ace murmurs in his ear. Felix turns his head to capture smiling lips in a kiss, reminded of why he’s found it so easy to adapt to a constant cycle of violence.

It’s the moments in between that count.

“Come on,” Ace encourages, pulling away just enough to smile against his lips. “You haven’t even found the fun scars yet.”

Felix chuckles and leans back, thankful for the shift in mood as he smooths both hands down Ace’s torso and enjoys the pleased hum he gets in return.

“Is this one?” Felix asks, locating a scar on Ace’s bicep that looks like a faded burn mark.

“I mean… kind of?” his lover grins. “I got smacked with a frying pan—totally deserved, by the way—and neither of us realized it was still hot.”

“Ouch,” Felix offers in sympathy.

“Eh, probably deserved that too,” Ace just shrugs, his grin never faltering. “Keep going, this is fun!”

“Hmm,” Felix considers, trying to ignore the obvious cuts and scrapes from running around the trial grounds. He settles on a discoloration around Ace’s knee, fingers circling the area while he looks up at Ace in question.

“Oh! That’s from getting my ass kicked in a bar fight,” Ace beams.

“And that’s a good thing because…?” Felix asks, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

“I won the bet!” his lover explains the old injury so cheerily Felix wonders if he’s actually just batshit crazy.

He should really know the answer to that by now.

“What about here?” Felix asks, moving his hand further up Ace’s leg to the inside of his thigh, where he idly remembers seeing a scar a few times before. It has the added bonus of getting Ace to spread his legs, so he can’t really complain, lightly brushing over the jagged edge of an old scar that must have been painful back in the day.

“Snagged it on a fence while being chased by the cop— _err_ , some uncooperative individuals,” Ace momentarily falters, offering an apologetic grin.

Once upon a time, Felix might have cared about upholding the law. But now, after essentially being a homicide victim for several months straight, he can’t really bring himself to give two shits about whatever petty crimes anyone committed in the real world.

“I take it you managed to get away?” Felix asks, long since having accepted his lover’s criminal record as a part of him.

“Best heist of my life, baby,” Ace purrs in approval, hesitance making way for unapologetic smugness.

There’s something satisfying about knowing Felix’s stuck-up social circle back home would be in an uproar if they knew just what kind of person he’d taken to shacking up with.

With the air suddenly feeling much heavier than before, Felix abandons his quest of lesser scars to run his hand further up Ace’s leg, the smirk on Ace’s face widening even more.

“And this one?” Felix asks, voice dropping to a suggestive murmur as he runs a finger down the length of the flaccid dick to settle just below the head, on a small discoloration he’s always been a little curious about.

“My first and only piercing,” Ace grins. “I don’t think I even lasted a day. Pro tip; don’t get your cock pierced while drunk off your ass.”

Felix huffs out a laugh through his nose and runs his thumb over the area, trying to imagine what it would look like pierced.

“You get beat up for fun, but this is where you draw the line?” Felix teases, enjoying the way his touch is making Ace squirm.

“I c-could be convinced to give it another try,” Ace says, breath hitching when Felix’s hand closes firmly around the shaft.

“I’d rather you avoid any and all new scars,” Felix scolds fondly. “There’s not a single part of you that’s not marked.”

“Kissing them better might help,” Ace suggests, and despite the breathless tone of his voice the shit-eating grin stays plastered on his face.

And even if Felix snorts and rolls his eyes at the far from subtle request, he leans down embarrassingly fast to comply.


	21. Day 21: I don't feel so well

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for whumptober, my first attempt at a hanahaki au! rated M for descriptions of illness, injury and blood.

“That was awesome! She didn't stand a chance!” Steve cheers.

“That's what she gets for camping. What a bitch!” Nea laughs

Ace grins despite the pain, steadying himself against Jeff's sturdy form while the four of them are making their way back to the campfire after a successful trial.

His head is swimming and there's blood staining his teeth, his back stinging from numerous bloody gashes from the killer's katana. But he's alive, even if he had to crawl out through the exit, his teammates not letting the Spirit secure the kill on him.

When they get back to camp, Steve and Nea are off to spin the tale of their rescue to the others, and Ace can't help but smile when they generously color the experience; just like he would.

Jeff supports him to sit down against one of the logs, offering a somewhat awkward "There you go, buddy" in encouragement.

Ace sees Quentin hand Claudette one of his med-kits and then the group's resident healer approaches him with determined steps.

“Hey, sweetheart—” Ace starts with a grin.

“Stalling isn't going to work,” Claudette shoots him down quickly, seeing right through his act. So Ace sighs dramatically and shrugs off his jacket, and the girl immediately hikes up his shirt to start cleaning the wounds on his back.

Ace hisses from the sting of some kind of alcohol, turning his attention back to the others to try to distract himself from the pain.

Most of the others are listening to to Steve's and Nea's story while the rest are scattered around camp, doing their own things. Kate is tuning her guitar, Jake is stocking one of his toolboxes, and Cheryl seems to be practicing the card trick Ace taught her a couple of days ago.

And then there's Felix.

Finally giving himself permission to look at the handsome German, Ace's heart immediately starts beating faster. He's not even _doing_ anything, just sitting by the fire engrossed in a conversation with Zarina, but Ace is so infatuated even just Felix _breathing_ is almost enough to make him blush.

He thought he was too old for schoolboy crushes like these, but then again how could he _not_ fancy Felix? The guy has some absolutely god-tier genes, a chiseled face and ice blue eyes and a body to die for. He’s also smart, and sophisticated, and filthy rich.

And god knows none of those qualities had ever been Ace's strong suit.

At first Ace had thought his hyperfixation on the man was jealousy, but then his body showed him that was _definitely_ not the case; he didn't want to _be_ Felix, he wanted to be _in_ Felix. The realization didn't phase him as much as it maybe should have, because even the straight-as-a-board Ash had commented on Felix's good looks. And Ace sure as hell wasn't even straight to begin with.

No, his panic had come from when he'd caught himself looking at couples like Jeff and Adam being mushy together and imagined himself and Felix in their place.

Ace had a healthy amount of confidence, though the others might not describe it that kindly, but he wasn't blind. Felix was younger than him, maybe not by an impossible amount but still enough to be noticeable. He was also model-tier gorgeous with a body to match, and while Ace wasn't bad-looking he also had a crooked nose and a build solely used for drinking and gambling.

All in all, he recognized when someone was out of his league, and even though he couldn't resist a cheeky flirt ever now and then, he knew his feelings would never be returned.

But he still allowed himself to look; sue him.

He's in the middle of an indulgent daydream about laying his head on Felix's lap like Kate is doing to Yui on the other side of camp, all the while effortlessly keeping up small talk with Claudette tending to his wounds.

And then he starts coughing.

It's not a normal dry cough, it wracks his entire body and keeps going, and he curls in on himself because _damn_ it’s making his throat hurts and his lungs ache something fierce.

“Ace, what's wrong?” Claudette's worried voice cuts through the attack. He tries to reply but it just makes him cough more, and it's not stopping—

Something slimy lands in the palm he's using to cover his mouth and then he can breathe again, taking sharp gasps of air while his throat tingles from the abuse.

He looks at whatever piece of his organs he managed to cough up, the Spirit's blade probably having rearranged some of his guts. He opens his hand and sees—

A flower?

It's absolute covered in blood, but there's no mistaking it, a single flower sitting in the palm of his hand with some loose petals surrounding it.

Why did he cough up a flower? Where did he even get it? It looks like some sort of cherry blossom, a far cry from the Entity's pustulas or the forest bouquets they pick and use for offerings.

“Are you okay?" Claudette asks, moving to kneel beside him in worry. When she sees the flower, she gasps in surprise.

“What happened?” Meg is quick to join her friend, coming up behind Ace to peer over his shoulder. “Uh… did that flower come out of you?”

“I… guess so?” Ace says, his voice raspy and throat protesting being used.

“So you just, like… ate it? Before?” Steve cocks his head in confusion.

“Come on now, I'm not _that_ stupid,” Ace snorts, some of his worry giving way to amusement over the incredulous situation.

“Then what the hell was that?” Meg asks, scrunching her face up in thought while poking at the gross flower.

“I’m pretty sure I know what’s wrong,” Adam raises his voice from across camp, straightening his back when all eyes turn to him. “It’s an illness, I recognize the symptoms."

“Can't say I've ever heard of a disease that makes you barf petals,” Ash offers, clearly skeptical, and Ace shares the sentiment.

“Shh, hear him out!” Laurie scolds.

"It's a Japanese folk story,” Adam explains. “Flowers start growing in a person's lungs, causing coughing and bleeding and..." he hesitates.

“Well?” Meg demands.

"And ultimately resulting in death, unless the condition is cured," Adam says grimly.

“Are you talking about hanahaki?” Yui pipes up before anyone can question the weird statement. “You know that's just a shojo manga trope, right?”

“It's also mentioned in historical literature,” Adam argues, though from the way he refuses to meet Yui's gaze, he seems to be embarrassed over the subject.

“Dude, nobody cares if you read girl comics, just tell us what the cure is,” Feng snorts, and that's probably the most concern Ace has ever seen her display over his well-being.

“It's—” Adam starts, before faltering, awkwardly scratching at his neck while looking at the ground. “Supposedly caused by unrequited love.”

There's dead silence in the camp.

And then Nea bursts out laughing.

“Jesus, what a story!” the tagger snickers. “Can you imagine Ace as a fairytale princess?”

“Honey, I think you might have gotten some myths mixed up,” Jeff says diplomatically, patting Adam's knee affectionately.

“Yeah, you probably just inhaled a flower in your sleep or something,” Steve encourages Ace.

“I'm pretty sure this is just a practical joke from our dear spidery overlord,” Ace chuckles and pointedly doesn't look Felix's way. Come next trial, his injuries will have healed anyway, including the weird burn in his lungs.

But they don’t.

Trial after trial, the Entity resurrects him and heals all of his wounds but the coughing persists, more and more flowers following.

Even the others are getting worried.

“That's it, bud,” Ash offers, patting his back while Ace is wheezing for breath after coughing up some more petals. “It's just a weird flu, you'll be good as new soon.”

“At least the flowers go with my shirt,” Ace jokes, voice reduced to a rasp, clearing his throat. “Pink was always my color.”

He's trying to keep his and the others' spirits high, since there doesn't seem to be anything they can do to fix the situation.

“We need to do something,” Ace hears Laurie hiss to Dwight, apparently disagreeing with his sentiment.

“B-but how can we even help him?” their leader, bless his heart, looks genuinely upset over Ace's condition.

“Maybe we should try Adam's suggestion," Laurie says.

“Yeah, except you _know_ he wouldn’t tell us even if he did like someone,” Yui huffs from beside them. “Good luck getting an answer out of a compulsive liar.”

Ouch, but also fair. Ace sure as hell isn't going to reveal his dumb little crush, especially since Felix has avoided him since this entire goddamn flower thing started. He knows there's only a slim chance that Felix realizes what's really going on, but it still feels like rejection nonetheless.

He can deal with this. Even if it kills him, the Entity will just bring him back anyway. It's not even that bad.

But then it gets so much worse.

After a week, Ace is laying on his side while black spots dance around in his vision and he struggles to draw enough wheezy breaths into his lungs. His chest _hurts_ , and his throat is so sore even just the air passing through burns like fire. He hasn't been able to speak in days, and that's almost worse than the pain, not being able to use his only coping mechanism of running his mouth until something sticks to lighten the mood.

His head is cushioned on Kate's thigh and he gets a tiny bit of satisfaction from the knowledge that at least he managed to lay in _one_ pretty blonde's lap before dying, even if it’s the wrong one. The touch is comforting nonetheless, though the fact that it’s accompanied by Kate's girlfriend practically screaming in his ear kind of puts a damper on the whole thing.

“I swear to god, I will make every single person in this camp kiss you, do _not_ test me,” Yui threatens, one of the few who haven't given up on curing him. “Is it Jane? Bill?”

If Ace had the energy, he'd probably laugh about her choices, curious as to why those two were the ones she picked. As it stands, he merely stares at her, wondering if his eyes look as dull and lifeless as he feels.

“He's going to die,” Jake says from somewhere to his side, but Ace doesn't even bother turning his head or denying the statement. Hurried voices shush the saboteur while Kate starts humming a melody to distract him, Yui glaring absolute daggers in Jake’s general direction.

His next trial, Jake's prediction comes true.

Ace collapses to the ground in the midst of a coughing fit. The flowers are growing even bigger now, he can feel them tearing at his throat and vocal cords, retching when they trigger his gag reflex on their way out. His vision blurs and then goes black, body finally giving up as the illness consumes him.

He's not even injured from the killer, but the pool of blood he falls into is big enough to cover the entire side of his face. He lays there, not sure if he's even breathing, just thankful that the awful coughing has stopped for at least a moment.

When he comes to, he expects the small comfort of the campfire before he has to go through the same thing again. Instead, he doesn't have enough energy to even open his eyes, slowly realizing he's still in the trial.

It takes him even longer to realize he's being held partly off of the ground, his body hanging limply in someone’s grasp. He idly wonders if a killer is going to mercy hook him, but then he hears something.

Crying.

Focusing on the sound, Ace realizes he's not just being lifted, he's being held in someone's arms. Someone is holding his near-dead body and _crying_.

With both his mind and body broken from suffering for so long, he allows himself to imagine it's Felix, even though he knows it's not true. Felix has shown he doesn't care, not talking to him and being so grossed out by his symptoms he’s barely even _looked_ at him—

“Das tut mir leid,” is whispered against his hair, and Ace wonders if he's hallucinating or if his brain has given up on speech comprehension, because that sounded an awful lot like German.

Suddenly, he gains some of his strength back, his chest not feeling nearly as tight as it has for the past few days.

“Felix?” Ace asks, and even though it comes out as a raspy whisper, it's impossible to miss in the stillness of the quiet moment. The surprised hitch of breath he gets in response sounds impossibly loud, and he manages to blink awake just enough to see the tear-streaked, wide-eyed face of the person he never thought he could have.

And that's when the Entity decides he's bled on the ground long enough and he blacks out from blood loss.

When Ace comes to, he's no longer in pain. He can _breathe_. And he wants nothing more than to get back to camp and be reassured that he wasn't imagining Felix being there for him in his final moments.

He runs to the campfire, panting from exertion once he's illuminated by the familiar glow and shocked faces turn to look at him.

“What the—did you _run_ here!?” Meg exclaims incredulously.

“Yeah,” Ace says, eyes scanning the small crowd of familiar faces, so focused on finding a particular one he doesn't even realize the implications of managing to speak without issue.

“Your voice!” Kate exclaims happily, and Ace pauses to collect some of his thoughts.

“Shit, you're right,” he says, a smile tugging on his lips for the first time in what feels like weeks.

“Welcome back, you bastard!” Nea cheers and flings herself at him in a sideways hug, and Ace stumbles to catch himself from falling, chuckling at her antics.

Claudette is sobbing, looking impossibly relieved, and the others are cheering among themselves, though Ace can't make out the contents because he sees a familiar figure making its way to camp and his entire world zones in on that person.

Felix looks up at the sound of the commotion, and Ace's heart breaks a little over how puffy his eyes still look, but then their eyes meet and Felix looks so _hopeful_ —

“Hey,” Ace says, and it probably gets drowned out by the others, but Felix's eyes widen in recognition and he starts walking faster.

“Are you…?” Felix asks, close enough for Ace to hear him over the others shouting.

“He's fixed!” Nea answers for him, finally letting go of the almost painful hug in favor of smacking Ace on the back encouragingly.

Felix glances at Nea but quickly looks back at Ace, waiting for confirmation.

“Yeah, I… guess I'm cured,” Ace says, and it almost feels weird to hear his own voice again. “Or... You know, I hope so.”

Because he's still not sure about Felix's feelings, and he has no idea where they're going to go from here.

But he doesn't need to worry, because Felix's face lights up in a way he's never seen before, letting out a disbelieving, genuine laugh. And then he's stepping forward and cupping his cheek and Ace only has time to blink in confusion before his head is tilted up into a kiss.

“ _Woah_ ,” Ace hears Nea exclaim, her hand leaving his back like burned. “This, uh… this is new.”

Ace smiles into the kiss and tunes out the rest of her and the others’ surprised babbling, grabbing Felix by the collar of his dress shirt and pulling him deeper into the kiss.

When neither of them are making a move to pull away, their friends seem to be getting fidgety from the show.

“Why don’t we go for a stroll in the woods?” Kate suggests, and the chorus of “Sure!” “Great idea!” and “Oh fuck yes get me out of here” that follow are enough for a laugh to bubble up in Ace’s throat and get swallowed by Felix’s mouth.

When the last pair of footsteps have hurried away, Felix deems it appropriate to finally break away from the kiss. Though he doesn’t go far, burying his head into the crook of Ace’s neck and shoulder and wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug.

“Welcome back,” Felix murmurs against his skin, and the warm affection spreading through Ace’s chest is a welcome change from the constant pain he’s been in for way too long.

“Didn’t expect such a thorough welcome,” Ace can’t resist flirting, hands sneaking up to rest on Felix’s incredibly firm back. The chuckle he gets in return reverberates through both of their bodies due to how close they are, and Ace wonders if Felix can hear his heart frantically beating in excitement.

“I’m… _shit_ ,” Felix eventually sighs, lifting his head to meet Ace’s eyes. “I don’t know how to make up for being an idiot. I just watched you suffer and didn’t know what to do.”

“It’s okay,” Ace says, but now he’s curious. “Why _did_ you avoid me?”

“Because I was afraid that I'd get the illness too,” Felix says, looking at the ground in shame. “I thought any one of us could get it, and because of how I feel about you… I was scared I was next.”

The confirmation that Felix had feelings for him even before this whole clusterfuck started is enough to make more butterflies dance in Ace’s gut, a flush creeping up his neck over how the other is openly spilling his heart.

“If I’d have known _I_ was the one causing it, I would have done something sooner. I’m so sorry," Felix murmurs, looking at him with sad puppy eyes.

“Hey, it's not like I was being very cooperative,” Ace points out, giving his most encouraging smile. “It's not your fault, it's the dumb flower sickness.”

“I'm sorry you had to go through that, regardless,” Felix frowns. “But… I'm glad it lead us here,” he adds with a bashful smile that makes Ace’s heart do a couple leaps.

“Figures the best and worst things of my life would happen simultaneously,” Ace flirts, and apparently Felix enjoys being called the best thing in his life, because his sappy smile widens even further.

Ace can’t resist diving in for another taste, capturing smiling lips in a kiss that lasts even longer than the first one and makes their friends groan and complain about “Geez, you’re still going?” when they rejoin them at the campfire.


	22. Day 22: Formal wear (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt for kinktober, rated M for mild sexual content, warning for implied homophobia.

Ace doesn’t think he’s ever felt this out of place.

The fancy suits and cocktail dresses mingling with each other is nothing new, and neither are the waitresses carrying trays of expensive champagne and tiny servings of obscure French sounding dishes. He’s been to these events before, effortlessly charming his way into conversations and making polite small talk while helping himself to a nice watch here or a misplaced purse there.

But this time, he can’t slink out into the darkness of the night at his leisure or as soon as a guest gasps and notices a missing personal belonging. Because this time, he’s not here in a disguise under one of his hundred different aliases.

“Thanks for waiting,” a familiar voice catches his attention, and Ace turns to see his entire reason for being here walk out of the nearby bathroom.

This time, he’s here as Ace Visconti, boyfriend of renowned architect Felix Richter.

“Took your sweet time,” Ace teases, the tension in his body melting away just from the other’s presence. “Is the champagne already getting to you?”

He tries to be discreet in the way his gaze roams over Felix’s new suit. He never thought he’d meet someone with an even more impeccable fashion sense than himself, but his boyfriend keeps proving him wrong, having picked out stylish suits both for himself and Ace in preparation of the event.

Ace had nearly cried when presented with his deep burgundy suit because of how perfect it looked. Then he’d almost bawled for an entirely different reason after inquiring how much it cost, and finally settled on squeezing the life out of his boyfriend in an enthusiastic hug when Felix told him he’d booked an appointment at a tailor to make sure it fit just right.

Never let it be said that Ace didn’t take suits seriously.

“I wish,” Felix snorts, which is a stark contrast to how posh he looks in his own expensive getup. He’s rocking a pretty conservative light grey pinstripe, but the way it perfectly hugs his shoulders and waist is already making a statement, as is the burgundy tie and pocket square that match Ace’s outfit. “That would give us an excuse to leave.”

The reminder that Felix hates cocktail parties even more than Ace is a reassuring thought.

“Come on, it’s not that bad,” Ace lies, settling for nudging Felix with his elbow even though he wants nothing more than to run his hands all over the gorgeous suit and even more gorgeous body underneath it.

“ _Fine_ ,” Felix sighs, seemingly oblivious to Ace’s inner turmoil. “Just a couple more introductions, and then we’re hitting the bar.”

“Works for me, baby,” Ace grins, following his boyfriend back into the fray of inferior suits and obnoxious perfume.

Hearing nothing but German around them, Ace’s excited smile morphs into a fake one while he takes in the respectable businessmen and -women socializing with each other, their fake laughs echoing through the open lounge. As if only knowing one person at the event and being an absolute idiot when it comes to architecture wasn’t bad enough, he also lacks a way to communicate with the other guests.

He just hopes Felix isn’t too ashamed to be seen with him.

“Ah! Felix, Ace! Over here!” a voice he actually understands snaps him out of it. He spots Lauren, Felix’s business partner, frantically waving to them from a larger group, and is elated when Felix course corrects in her direction.

Tonight is the first time Ace has met Lauren in person, and he can easily see why Felix always speaks fondly of her. She’s lively and friendly, and the way her and Felix seem to have almost like a sibling rivalry, teasing and one-upping each other, has been the highlight of Ace’s night so far.

It also doesn’t hurt that she’s the only one bothering to get to know him.

“Did you try the pâté yet?” Lauren immediately distances herself from the group’s conversation in favor of addressing Ace, allowing Felix to jump in in her stead. Despite the accent that is much heavier than Felix’s own, Ace appreciates the effort more than he could ever tell her.

“I don’t think so,” Ace says, glancing at her generous plate of food and smiling over how against the etiquette it is. “Is it good?”

“Absolutely terrible,” Lauren grimaces and shakes her head, causing Ace to huff out a laugh at her unapologetic honesty. “Just wanted to save your taste buds,” she says, before seeming to consider something. “You should get Felix to try it.”

“You’re a demon,” Ace grins. “If I didn’t like his suit so much, I would. Wouldn’t want to ruin it with some once-chewed pâté.”

“Hmm, yes, I see your point,” Lauren hums, glancing at Felix mingling with who Ace assumes to be their studio’s business associates. “The suit is nice. But I like yours better,” she says bluntly, stuffing several crackers into her mouth and giving him a smile.

“Thanks, sweetheart,” Ace grins, feeling heat spread over his cheeks at the earnest compliment. “You look stunning in that dress. The color is great on you,” he compliments effortlessly, the turquoise cocktail dress sticking out in the crowd and highlighting her pale complexion beautifully.

“Charmer,” she mumbles around the crackers in her mouth, playfully slapping him on the arm. Finally swallowing, she continues, “Thank you for dragging Felix here. It’s impossible to get him to come alone”.

“I don’t know who dragged who, but you’re welcome,” Ace says. “I’m just trying to smile and look pretty and pretend to know German.”

“You should try to enjoy it,” Lauren says. “Get food and drink, maybe find a place to sit down with Felix. Don’t be afraid to drag him off. He doesn’t like groups of people.”

“I—” Ace starts. “You know what, I might just do that. Thanks.”

“No problem,” she smiles. “I’m going to find my idiot husband. I will see you later, yes?”

“Sure, have fun,” Ace offers and with that, Lauren is off and Ace is left to wonder if he’s ever going to have the privilege of being a certain someone’s idiot husband.

Like having a sixth sense, said someone immediately seems to realize he’s been left on his own, pausing mid-sentence to beckon him over to the group.

“Everyone, I’d like you to meet my partner Ace,” Felix wastes no time to introduce him, effortlessly switching languages in a way that no doubt gives whiplash to some of his audience.

“Pleasure to meet you all,” Ace says with a pleasant fake smile, trying to not let his nerves show.

“Partner? You also work in architect studio?” a sour lady in a blazer and a fancy bun asks in broken English, and it’s enough to make Ace fidget awkwardly, not knowing how to respond—

“ _No_ ,” Felix says pointedly, and then he’s wrapping an arm around Ace’s waist and pulling him closer, and it’s a little funny to watch the realization dawn on the snobbish group.

“I thought… you just became father,” one of the older gentlemen in the group speaks up, seeming confused.

“Yes,” Felix answers simply, staring at the man as if daring him to make further comments. 

Ace feels himself wanting to explain that Felix and his ex have shared custody and separated on amicable terms, both having found new partners during Felix’s disappearance, and now their kid would grow up with four parents who loved her. But since Felix doesn’t seem to want to elaborate on their personal lives, Ace bites his tongue and watches with no small level of amusement as the group cowers under his boyfriend’s intimidating aura.

“Honey, why don’t we get you that drink you were talking about?” Ace asks sweetly, laying it on a little thick and even brushing his hand over Felix’s arm. “Unless you were in the middle of something?”

“No, I think we’re done here,” Felix says, giving the group one last indifferent stare before leading him in the direction of the bar.

“Those poor souls don’t know what hit them,” Ace tries to joke despite his growing urge to tear off the suit off of Felix after the possessive behavior.

“I hate people,” Felix grumbles, grabbing two glasses of wine from the tray and pouring them into one.

“I hope it’s not going to hurt the business,” Ace voices some of his worries, taking a single serving of red while his boyfriend is already downing a big gulp of his double.

“If it does, I wouldn’t want to work with them anyway,” Felix huffs, not seeming the least bit worried. Still, he looks tense and uncomfortable, eyes flitting over the crowd while frowning.

“Let’s go sit down,” Ace recalls Lauren’s earlier advice, taking Felix’s hand and pulling him away from the boring party.

Because cocktail parties seem to be incapable of incorporating any seating, they end up wandering into the mostly empty foyer of the venue and sitting down on a windowsill. It’s a little cramped for two grown men, but Ace sure as hell doesn’t mind scooting close, Felix already relaxing next to him from the relative peace and quiet.

Felix is still enjoying his wine at an almost alarming rate, but Ace knows he can hold his liquor and lets him do his thing. He focuses on sipping his own drink, squeezing Felix’s knee in reassurance while looking at the wait staff scurrying in and out of a hallway that must lead to the kitchen.

After only a few minutes, Felix seems to be much calmer, exhaling long and loud and fingers intertwining with Ace’s on his knee.

“Thank you,” Felix says. “I can’t promise I wouldn’t have thrown my drink in someone’s face if you didn’t drag me away.”

“As much as I would’ve paid to see that, maybe this was a better option,” Ace smiles. “And I can finally get you alone for a minute.”

“I’d so much rather be home together,” Felix groans and Ace still feels some dumb little butterflies in his gut over how Felix always refers to his house as _their_ home. “This is awful.”

“It’s not that bad,” Ace tries to argue. “I mean, it’s not the party of the century, but I’m just glad you brought me along even if I stick out like a sore thumb. So thanks, and, uh. Sorry for all the trouble it’s causing you,” he cringes and offers a sheepish grin in apology.

“I—what?” Felix says, frowning. “You’re the only reason I’ve even _somewhat_ enjoyed this god-awful event. _I_ should be thanking _you.”_

“So you’re… _not_ ashamed of your dumb boyfriend who doesn’t know jack shit about the language or buildings?” Ace clarifies.

“I don’t know who you’re talking about, because I brought my beautiful and witty partner to show off what those uninteresting snobs can only dream of having,” Felix says with a smile, leaning their foreheads together in a way more intimate gesture than is acceptable in a setting like this.

And like with everything else, Ace is happy to shatter expectations, going in for a kiss that is _definitely_ inappropriate for such a high-brow event.

Felix responds with a pleased hum, happily reciprocating. Ace completely forgets where they are, lapping at the seam of Felix’s lips to deepen the kiss—

Felix pulls away with a chuckle and the reality of the situation washes over Ace, hurrying to back away and clear his throat as a waiter passing by gives them a funny look. Damn, that was close; they should probably get back to the party before anyone gets suspicious.

But his boyfriend, apparently, has a different idea.

“Do you want to sneak off somewhere?” Felix leans in to murmur into his ear, hand creeping up along the fancy fabric of Ace’s dress pants.

“Uh,” Ace says stupidly, taken off guard by how forward his partner is being. But considering how delicious Felix is looking in the suit, and how good Ace feels in his own, already imagining peeling the beautiful outfits off of each other and revealing Felix’s amazing body—

Ace swallows and forcefully shoves the thought into the back of his mind. _Later_.

“Maybe we should get home first?” he manages to suggest, voice not nearly as steady as he would have liked.

Still, he’s kind of proud of himself for being the rational of the two for once, able to resist temptation despite the tent already forming in his expensive pants. Fooling around here would be a downright idiotic, colossally dumb move—

“I want the entire party to hear you screaming my name,” Felix breathes into his ear and palms at his dick through the pants and the last of Ace’s few rational brain cells promptly leave the building.

“ _Fuck_ , yes,” he groans.

Who knew the boring party would end up this way?

Felix leads him to a door clearly marked “staff only”, and without any hesitation, opens it and tugs Ace after him.

The suit, the enthusiasm, _and_ the rule-breaking? It’s like he knows just what to do to drive Ace out of his mind with lust.

Felix finds some sort of a supply closet, and Ace only has time to finish half of his joke about how cliché it is before he’s pulled inside and shoved up against the door and a needy mouth finds his.

“You look so good,” Felix murmurs and leans back to looks him up and down, hands roaming all over his still-clothed body. “I knew this would be an amazing color on you. Could barely keep my hands off of you even in front of all those people.”

_Well_. Looks like Ace isn’t the only one with a suit kink.

“You gonna help me out of it, baby?” Ace purrs, yanking Felix closer by his tie.

“Later,” Felix promises, giving him a quick peck. “Luckily I don’t need to undress you for this.”

It takes Ace’s lust-fogged mind a second too long to catch up, and then Felix’s skilled hands are already unbuttoning his pants, wasting no time to dive in and fish out his junk.

Just when Ace is about to ask how he can help, Felix shuts him up with an eager kiss while working his hand up and down his shaft, and the thought morphs into a needy moan into his boyfriend’s mouth.

All too soon, Felix is pulling away from the passionate kiss, causing him to tug at the tie in protest. When Felix just smiles in promise and gently untangles his hold on the clothing, Ace lets him.

And then watches, breathless, as his lover sinks down on his knees and eyes his cock with very obvious intent.

“W-what if I ruin the suits?” Ace, somehow, still has enough brain capacity left to feebly protest.

When all that gets him is lust-blown eyes looking up at him mischievously, he already knows he’s doomed.

“In that case, you’d better aim well,” Felix smirks before the sinfully hot mouth engulfs his dick and Ace, just as promised, screams his boyfriend’s name.


	23. Day 23: Childhood bedroom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for flufftober, rated G and no warnings!

“What if she doesn’t even _like_ pink?”

Ace resists the urge to roll his eyes at his partner’s unnecessary fretting. Felix has been nervously walking in a circle around the room for close to ten minutes, needlessly stressing over every small detail in their little renovation project.

“She’s a year and a half,” Ace points out, for once trying to be the rational party in their relationship. “I don’t think she even knows what ‘liking’ something means.”

He’s sitting on the narrow bed in one of the guest rooms and watching his lover pace. Felix is trying to figure out how he wants to convert the room into a nursery, but he’s doing a whole lot more panicking than actual planning.

“But what if she grows up and thinks I’m trying to force a mold on her?” Felix fusses, running a hand through his already messed up hair in a familiar nervous gesture. “I don’t want her to feel pressured.”

“From wall paint,” Ace deadpans.

“W-well, what about the bed?” Felix insists. “Maybe I shouldn’t get her a crib. Maybe she wants something like... a race car bed!”

Ace tries and fails to suppress the amused snort, chuckling at Felix’s absurd ideas while his lover huffs in offense and continues pacing.

“I’m sorry baby, you’re just being ridiculous,” Ace reassures with an encouraging smile.

“I know, I just—” Felix sighs, sweeping the hair out of his face again. “I don’t want to mess this up.”

Hearing the worry in Felix’s voice, Ace gets up to envelop him in a hug.

“Hey,” he says softly, chin resting on Felix’s shoulder. “You’re a great dad. As long as you don’t install a spike pit or something, nothing in this room can change that.”

Felix huffs out a shaky laugh next to his ear, and trembling hands come up to rest on Ace’s back.

“I hope you’re right,” Felix says, and then he takes a long breath and grips Ace’s shirt tightly. “I don’t… I don’t know if I’m ready,” he whispers, like it’s something he’s afraid to say.

It breaks Ace’s heart, but at the same time, he has absolutely no doubts that Felix will be anything short of amazing.

“Whatever you decide, I’m here for you,” Ace murmurs, bringing his hand up to stroke Felix’s hair. “But in my not-so-humble opinion, you’re probably the best prepared dad in the history of dads.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve read like, what, twenty baby books by now?” Ace reminds.

“Fourteen,” is mumbled into his shoulder.

“Which is thirteen and three fourths more effort than other dads put in,” Ace says. “And all this worrying? Just proves that you _care_ about her, and that’s the most important thing.”

“But what if I do something wrong? What if she misses her mother? What if she gets sick? What if—” Felix rambles, pulling away from the embrace to gesture to one of his countless worries in the room.

“ _Babe_ ,” Ace interrupts firmly. “That’s where the nanny comes into the picture. If there’s something we can’t handle, she’ll take care of it.”

“But I _should_ be able to handle it, I’m her father! And I haven’t been there for her nearly as much as I should have," Felix protests.

“Yeah, because you were stuck in another dimension with no way out,” Ace points out. “Not because you _wanted_ to ditch her!”

“Still, she barely knows who I am,” Felix frowns. “And growing up with separated parents? She deserves so much better.”

“Are you kidding me? She’s the luckiest kid in the whole damn world!” Ace protests.

Felix doesn’t look convinced, but at least he’s not putting himself down anymore, so Ace continues.

“I mean, one of her stepdads is a total nutcase,” he grins, and Felix lets out an adorable little chuckle at that. “But she’s got four parents who will do anything to make her happy. A lot of kids don’t even have one.”

His voice cracks on the last word, reminded of his own childhood with a struggling single mother who disappeared for days on end, leaving her kids to fend for themselves in a small house that was practically falling apart.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why the subject is making him sentimental, and now it’s Felix’s turn to pull him back into comforting arms.

“You’re right,” Felix says, cupping the back of his head and holding him close, his own worries forgotten at least momentarily. “Thank you for putting things into perspective.”

“Anytime, sweetheart,” Ace replies, leaning into the familiar comfort with a smile. “I’m here to keep your feet firmly on the ground, one shitty joke at a time.”

“I mean it. I can’t even begin to describe how grateful I am for everything you’ve done for me,” Felix says, intertwining their fingers and pulling away just enough to look deep into his eyes. “I don’t think I could do this alone.”

“Don’t underestimate yourself,” Ace grins, squeezing Felix’s hands clasped in his. “But I’m happy to be along for the ride for as long as you’ll have me.”

“Bold of you to assume I’m ever going to let you go,” Felix teases with a mischievous little smirk.

And Ace smiles and nuzzles into the skin of Felix’s neck, a warmth he’s only recently come to recognize as the feeling of _home_ spreading through his chest.

Ace knows Felix is going to have many more episodes of parental panicking. He also knows his own parenting skills are questionable at best, and he _definitely_ knows they’re going to end up spoiling Felix’s daughter rotten.

But none of that matters, because they’re going to be a _family_ , something Ace hasn’t experienced in decades and didn’t even know he wanted until the opportunity presented itself. It still blows his mind that Felix would trust him with the responsibility, having much more faith in him than Ace thinks he deserves.

He’s getting sentimental again, clutching Felix tighter while blinking away a sudden wetness in his eyes. There’s a soothing hand in his hair and a soft murmur against his ear and that’s enough to ground him, sighing against the fabric of Felix’s shirt.

And then his brain does a complete 180, a thought so inappropriate for the intimate moment popping up in his mind Ace is helpless to stop the surprised guffaw against Felix’s shoulder.

“What?” Felix asks, amusement clear in his voice and already used to Ace’s mind coping through the worst jokes at inopportune times.

“Does this mean I can start calling you ‘daddy’?” Ace offers with a lecherous grin, wagging his eyebrows for good measure.

Felix snorts and shoves at him and Ace barks out a hearty laugh.

“You’re terrible,” Felix chastises, but fails to stop his mouth quirking up into a smile before turning to leave. “Come on, we’re going paint shopping.”

“Pink?” Ace clarifies, needing to know if he successfully reassured his boyfriend.

“Pink,” Felix nods with newfound determination.


	24. Day 24: Carnival

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for cocktober, mostly fluff & humor but rated T for suggestive language & implied internalized homophobia!

Felix doesn’t remember when he’s last had this much fun.

Sure, he’s spent way more than he meant to on rigged carnival games and overpriced street food and only has a poorly made plushie and some heartburn to show for it. 

But the company more than makes up for it.

Ace’s gaze is glued to the wheel of fortune, watching it spin with an eager smile that reminds Felix of a child waiting for Christmas. He doesn’t necessarily approve of his boyfriend’s gambling habits, but he’s not against it, either, not even dreaming of denying Ace when he gave Felix his best puppy eyes and assured “Just one round, I promise!”.

Predictably, the wheel doesn’t land on Ace’s number, but it doesn’t seem to phase him.

“It was worth a shot!” Ace grins. “Now give me back my cock.”

Felix snorts and obediently hands the rooster plushie back to its rightful owner, silently adding another tick to his mental tally of how many penis jokes the toy has inspired. That’s six, now.

“Where to next?” Felix asks, carefully clasping Ace’s hand.

The bright smile and reassuring squeeze he gets in return is enough to calm his resurfacing nerves. This is the first time they’re in public together as a couple, and Felix isn’t even out yet, nor is his divorce finalized. They were supposed to go as just friends, Ace reassuring him he didn’t mind, insisting Felix needed to get out and enjoy himself after the stress of grading midterms and filing for divorce.

And even though Felix still feels a little anxious, the carnival spirit had hit him hard, and he found himself laughing and joking and playing childish games without restraint. Having Ace by his side was just so _nice_ , and he’d realized they hadn’t even been on a proper date before.

When he’d grabbed Ace’s hand after they made absolute fools of themselves at the water gun stall, more focused on soaking each other than hitting the actual targets, it had felt new and scary but also _right_. From then on, it only became easier, lingering touches on his boyfriend’s shoulder or a casual arm around his hip, even daring to share a secretive kiss behind one of the tents.

“What about the ferris wheel?” Ace suggests, a mischievous glint in his eye. “If you’re nice I’ll even let you pet my cock.”

_Seven_.

“Oh no, I just remembered I’m afraid of heights,” Felix teases. “Looks like you and your cock will have to fly solo.”

_Eight_.

To think that just a few hours ago, he was nervous to even be seen in public with Ace, and now he’s holding his hand in the middle of a crowd and making sexual innuendos.

“Oh, what’s that?” Ace jokes, lifting the toy up to his ear. “Apparently, he’s bored of my attention and likes yours _so much more_ ,” his boyfriend purrs.

The ridiculous display shouldn’t make Felix blush but it does, suddenly feeling a little hot under the collar, awkwardly clearing his throat while trying to fight the flush creeping up his neck.

“Why don’t we get something to drink?” he suggests, noticing how dry his throat seems to be.

“Getting a little thirsty?” Ace smirks but, thankfully, drops the line of conversation that is _very_ much not appropriate for a family event like this.

They have some trouble locating a food stall that doesn’t have a mile-long line but that’s alright with Felix, already feeling calmer as they leisurely explore the carnival grounds together. Felix points out some games he wants to try later and Ace half-heartedly tries to talk him into another round of the fortune wheel, and it’s a much needed break from hiding their relationship and worrying about the future.

Felix idly wonders when they’ll get to do this again. The carnival is taking place two towns over, which is one of the main reasons he agreed to come, knowing that the chances of bumping into someone he knows are slim. His social circle isn’t very big, but it’s mostly the school his worried about; running into colleagues or students wouldn’t necessarily put his career in danger, but it would make the rumors spread like wildfire. He’d rather keep his personal life private, at least until the divorce is finalized.

Luckily, the crowd has been nothing but unfamiliar faces the entire evening and he has nothing to worry about, at least for now. He grips Ace’s hand tighter as his boyfriend stops to finally look at a map after their aimless wandering, and he kind of wants to pull him in for a quick kiss, even in front of all these people.

Ace flashes him a bright smile before turning back to the map, oblivious to Felix’s intentions. Feeling his heart rate pick up, Felix swallows, looking around one last time to make sure nobody is watching—

And locking eyes with one of his students.

Felix freezes completely, not even realizing to let go of Ace’s hand, staring at the familiar young man in shock while Ace prattles on about something he saw on the map.

Felix doesn’t know whether the situation is made better or worse by the fact that it’s a student he actually _likes_. Dwight isn’t the top of his class by any means, but he’s hard-working and polite and Felix’s heart broke the one time he had to inform him he was about to fail a class. He’d hurried to offer additional assignments to get him a passing grade and Dwight had looked like he was about to cry from relief, profusely thanking him and apologizing over and over.

He doubts Dwight dislikes him, especially after that incident, but Felix is also pretty sure the entire school knows he’s married to the music teacher. Kate’s students love her and he’s already received a few hostile glares from sharp-eyed students who have either noticed their missing rings or maybe even asked Kate about it.

It feels like time itself slows down to a crawl as Dwight very obviously looks between Felix and his boyfriend. When his eyes widen in clear surprise, Felix stops breathing. This is it, it’s all over, tomorrow the entire school is going to know—

And then Dwight offers a small smile and a meaningful nod before turning back to his friend who looks to be engrossed in a game of ring toss. Felix lets out a sigh of relief and feels the tension leave his body. That was close.

“You okay?” Ace asks with a worried frown, and it’s only then Felix realizes how sweaty his palm is.

“Yeah, I…” Felix says, momentarily letting go of Ace’s hand to wipe his own on his pants. “Thought I saw someone. It’s fine.”

“We can leave if you want,” Ace says, always incredibly understanding of Felix’s anxiety. “Call it a night and watch one of those shitty slasher movies you like?”

Felix’s heart feels like it’s getting torn in different directions. His nerves are frazzled from the subconscious stress and the close call of getting outed against his will, but at the same time it’s the best day he’s had in years and he’s getting so, _so_ tired of hiding.

Ace has been way more understanding than Felix deserves, patiently waiting for him to fumble his way through his first relationship with a man. There has been zero pressure from Ace’s side, other than ending things with Kate before things went further because “I’m a pretty shitty person, but not _that_ shitty”. Ace had let him take things at his own pace, not making a big deal out of Felix’s clothes appearing in an empty drawer in his apartment or Felix’s toothbrush making a permanent stay next to his own.

And if the only thing Felix could do without freaking out was to hold his boyfriend’s hand in public, he’d sure as hell do it at every opportunity from now on.

“I’m alright,” Felix says with newfound determination, taking the inviting hand back in his own and intertwining their fingers. “I want to stay.”

He leaves out the “with you” and “forever” parts of the sentence. That will have to come later.

“Okay,” Ace agrees, though he still doesn’t look entirely convinced. “But it’s a standing offer. We can bail whenever you feel like it.”

The consideration melts away the last of Felix’s tension from the Dwight incident. He’s never understood how Ace can be so easy-going, expertly reading the room and always adapting with a smile on his face. Felix doesn’t even realize he’s been leaning closer until Ace’s smile widens into a roguish grin, tilting his head up and waiting for Felix to kiss him—

”Mr. Richter!”

Felix flinches away and reflexively drops Ace’s hand like burned, not missing the hurt flashing across his boyfriend’s face before it’s covered up by a pleasant smile. God, why is he like this, he can’t do anything right—

“Mr. Richter! Over here!” the voice is getting louder and Felix grits his teeth and turns to acknowledge its owner.

He sees another of his students, the Harrington kid, excitedly running over to him with a mortified Dwight hot on his heels.

“I thought it was you, dude! Good to see you!” Steve grins happily and Felix can’t find it in himself to be mad over a student just so genuinely happy to talk to him.

And then he realizes the consequences of this particular student seeing him in public with a man.

Steve isn’t a bad kid, but he _is_ somewhat of a troublemaker, thankfully calming down a little after switching from a bad crowd to Dwight’s group of friends. But it’s not a harmless prank or poorly timed joke or interruption of a lecture that Felix is worried about.

It’s Steve’s absolute inability to keep his mouth shut.

“Hello Steve, Dwight,” Felix nods politely to them both, trying not to let it show that he’s screaming on the inside. He feels a little better when Dwight gives him an apologetic look from behind his friend and mouths a “sorry”.

“Hi, Mr. Richter,” Dwight says, hurriedly pulling on Steve’s arm. “We’ll just be on our way—”

“Where’s the missus?” Steve asks with a grin, peering behind Felix as if expecting Kate to appear out of thin air, and Felix clenches his fists and tries not to freak out even more than he already is. What the hell is he even supposed to answer to that?

“Oh, are you students of his?” Ace butts in, saving Felix’s sanity.

“Yeah, we’re in his physics classes!” Steve exclaims.

“Ah, taking a well-deserved break after midterms?” Ace effortlessly starts making casual conversation. “I’ve heard the physics teacher is a real hardass.”

“W-well, I think he’s really fair,” Dwight stammers, giving Felix a nervous glance.

“I mean yeah, he’s pretty strict but he also makes sure everyone understands, even if they’re a complete dingus,” Steve says and looks at Felix with a happy little grin. A tinge of pride blooms in his chest, always enjoying hearing his students compliment his work ethic.

There’s a beat of silence and Felix realizes everyone’s waiting for him to say something.

“This is Ace,” Felix starts, hesitating on how to introduce him.

“Hi, boys,” Ace hurries to take over, once again saving Felix from his inner turmoil. “Good to meet you.”

“Hey, man!” Steve greets cheerily. Then his eyes flick to the toy in Ace’s hands. “Nice cock.”

Ace barks out a hearty laugh while Felix chokes on his own spit and Dwight’s face goes beet red.

…Nine?

“Steve!” Dwight hisses in embarrassment while Steve just snickers.

“What? It’s a cool plushie!” Steve protests innocently.

“I like you, kid,” Ace grins in approval, before turning to Felix. “Why don’t I go grab us those drinks while you guys catch up?”

Felix gives him a wide-eyed look that simultaneously screams “please don’t leave me” and “please go away before I accidentally kiss you in front of my students”.

“Okay,” he manages with an unstable voice, not sure how he’ll survive Steve’s questions without Ace’s help, but knowing that splitting up will make them seem less conspicuous. Ace gives him a reassuring smile and turns to leave—

“Hold on, I’ll go with you!” Steve exclaims and Felix swears he hears Dwight mutter an exasperated “ _fuck_ ”.

Ace looks at Steve in surprise before glancing at Felix, and when he doesn’t protests because he’s too busy internally panicking, Ace gives a one-shoulder shrug.

“Sure! It’ll be nice to have company in the three-hour line,” Ace grins.

“Cool!” Steve returns the smile, before turning to Dwight. “You want something, babe?”

…Hold on. “ _Babe_ ”?

“N-no, I’m good, thanks,” Dwight stammers, face flushing red and fidgeting awkwardly. “I’ll wait here.”

“Alright, see you soon!” Steve offers with a goofy grin before leaving into the sea of people with Ace.

Felix stares after them for a few seconds too long before finally looking at Dwight, mouth opening and closing and not quite figuring out what to say.

“Okay, look, I’m—” Dwight nervously breaks the silence. “I’m _so_ sorry about Steve, he just… really, _really_ wanted to say hi, I don’t think he realized what he was—um, interrupting,” Dwight’s face somehow flushes even redder and Felix clears his throat, feeling heat rise on his own cheeks. “We’ll be out of your hair as soon as he gets back. Sorry.”

“That’s alright,” Felix lies, because he knows neither boy meant any harm and doesn’t want them to feel bad. “Can you… could you keep this to yourselves?”

“Oh! Of course!” Dwight hurries to reassure. “I, um, I know what it’s like. Steve used to have a girlfriend, and it took a while before he was ready to—err. You probably don’t care about any of that, sorry,” Dwight realizes, looking down at the ground in shame.

Felix _does_ care, in fact he’s downright curious how the pair managed to deal with the situation, but he doesn’t know how to convey that without crossing the line of professionalism. Damnit, if only Ace was here—

“It’s just… You don’t have to worry about us telling anyone,” Dwight continues. “I-I’m sorry we, like. Invaded your privacy like this.”

“I suppose I could say the same,” Felix says. “I never knew you were a couple. I’ll be sure not to tell anyone.”

“Yeah, it’s… not necessarily a secret, anymore, but… thanks,” Dwight offers him a nervous smile. “Not everyone knows, and we’re cool with that.”

Relief floods over Felix as he realizes his secret is safe, at least for now. It never fails to amaze him just how mature his students can be, dealing with the exact same life problems as adults his age, and it just reminds him of why he became a teacher in the first place.

“Do you want to sit down while we wait?” Felix suggests, spotting a nearby bench that miraculously seems to be unoccupied. Dwight responds with a nod and a friendly smile, and soon they’re sitting down and making pleasant small talk about the carnival.

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, but… how did you meet?” Dwight asks cautiously after a while.

Felix knows he shouldn’t share his private life with a student, but he’s not on the clock and Dwight was the one to offer, seeming genuinely curious, so he starts talking.

And even if Felix ends up gushing about Ace like a schoolboy, Dwight doesn’t seem to care, adding cute “aww” comments and even sharing some of his best memories with Steve. Felix realizes it’s the first time he’s been able to openly talk about his relationship with someone who he knows won’t judge, and he feels like just a normal guy in a new relationship, hopeful and excited instead of anxious and paranoid like before.

And when their boyfriends eventually arrive with a lapful of food and drink and _another_ rooster plushie, Ace making the tenth cock joke for the evening and Dwight chuckling while Steve laughs like a hyena, Felix feels like he's finally found a place where he belongs.


	25. Day 25: Bondage (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for kinktober, rated E for sexual content.

“Hey, pumpkin?” Ace starts sweetly, pulling away from their kiss that was just getting heated, Felix subconsciously chasing his lips.

“What?” he sighs in fond exasperation, already knowing from Ace’s tone that there's something he wants.

They've snuck out into the woods for some alone time, and Felix would prefer to get to the main event sooner rather than later, feeling pent up from just the kissing and teasing touches.

Still, he's humoring Ace, because he's way more fond of the man than any sane person should be.

“Remember when we talked about kinks?” Ace asks, trying and failing to voice the question with innocent curiosity. “And you said you weren't opposed to bondage?”

“Perhaps,” Felix says, a little wary, because you just never know when it comes to Ace. He wouldn’t be surprised if his lover asked to be chained with the Deathlinger’s weapon or something equally stupid. “What did you have in mind?”

“Just out of curiosity, would you let me tie you up?” Ace asks, running a finger down his still clothed chest. “Nothing extreme, just your hands behind your back or something?”

It's embarrassing how quickly an excited shiver runs through Felix’s body when he imagines the scenario. Based on the way Ace's pleasant smile morphs into a smug grin, his lover notices the reaction too.

“Well, I didn't know you'd be _this_ cooperative,” Ace purrs. “You want to be at my mercy, baby?”

Felix swallows, _knowing_ how unpredictable Ace is, but also trusting he'd never do anything to cause Felix discomfort.

“Yes,” Felix says, voice already breathless from just the implications of giving up all control.

“Atta boy,” Ace purrs, leaning on for another kiss. Felix eagerly kisses back, hands roaming all over Ace's body while he still has the chance to.

There's a metallic clink and then Ace is pulling away and a pair of handcuffs are dangling in front of Felix's face.

“Where did you—” Felix starts, before realization dawns on him. _Tapp_. “He's going to kill you,” he offers with an amused huff, absolutely certain the detective wouldn’t have parted with the item voluntarily.

“Worth it,” Ace grins victoriously. "So? What do you say?”

Felix eyes the sturdy handcuffs nervously. They look uncomfortable, but he knows they're the real deal, not like those flimsy fur ones he's seen bought as gag gifts. He's not just giving up the illusion of control, he's actually going to be helpless.

“Or we can use your tie,” Ace suggests, apparently taking his silence as hesitance.

“No, I want the cuffs,” Felix insists a little too eagerly.

“Perfect,” Ace grins, before looking around. “How about you sit against that tree and put your hands behind it?”

Felix looks at the tree in question and gets up to obey, leaning against the trunk and immediately reaching his hands around it, shuffling to find a good position.

“Comfortable?” Ace comes up behind him to ask, the cool metal of one of the cuffs clicking shut around Felix's left wrist.

“Yeah,” Felix breathes, leaning his head back against the bark of the tree. They haven’t even started yet, and he’s already out of breath and there’s an obvious tent in his slacks.

The second cuff snaps shut and when Ace tugs lightly on the chain to test the restraints, Felix is mortified to let out a low moan.

“Oh, _sweetheart_ ,” Ace's voice is a low rumble against his ear when he leans even closer. “This is really doing it for you, huh?”

“It was _your_ idea,” Felix grumbles while turning his head to the side in embarrassment, because that's one of the few things he _can_ do in his position.

“Oh trust me, I'm enjoying myself,” Ace grins, rounding the tree to sit down and straddle his lap. “Just happy to see you are too. Control is a funny thing, isn't it?”

“Are you just going to talk, or are you going to do something?” Felix challenges.

“Aren't you impatient,” Ace tuts. “Lucky for you, so am I,” he grins and starts unbuttoning Felix's dress shirt.

His lover takes his sweet time, nimble fingers effortlessly sliding between working on the buttons, drawing nonsensical patterns on his chest, and even rubbing over a clothed nipple.

“Ace,” Felix warns, trying to push up into the touch, his hands uselessly pulling on the cuffs in his haste to make his boyfriend hurry it up.

“Yes, honey?” Ace coos with a shit-eating grin, knowing exactly what a tease he's being.

“Get on with it,” Felix demands.

“Hmm, see, I don't think you're in any position to make demands,” Ace grins, slowing his movements even further. “However, if you ask _nicely_ …”

A devious hand tugs on his nipple and Felix chokes on a moan.

“Please,” Felix breathes, blood rushing to both his face and dick from how vulnerable he feels having to beg. “Hurry. _Please_.”

"Aww, look at you,” Ace smiles, cupping his cheek with one hand and leaning close. “Don't worry baby, I'll take care of you,” is murmured into their shared breathing space before Ace claims his lips in a soft kiss.

His lover’s spare hand makes quick work of the remaining buttons even as Ace is busy with kissing him, Felix eagerly kissing back after finally being given what he wants. All too soon, Ace is pulling away to look at Felix's naked skin being revealed as the shirt slides open.

“Beautiful,” Ace smiles in approval. He gently pushes the shirt off of Felix's chest, bunching it up along his still restrained arms. “Can I leave it there? It's not too uncomfortable, is it?”

“It's fine,” Felix says, not able to resist a smile over Ace's continued worrying. “Keep going.”

“As you wish,” Ace grins, moving to Felix's slacks.

Thankfully, Ace is much quicker in removing the garment, even if he “accidentally” brushes over Felix's dick a few times and causes its owner to groan impatiently. Despite the distractions, soon Felix’s pants, along with his underwear, are being pulled down to his ankles. Ace is about to remove one of his shoes to be able to pull his pants off and free his legs, when he suddenly pauses.

“Can I leave them on?” Ace suggests on a whim. “Keep your legs tied up?”

“Yeah,” Felix agrees instantly, blood rushing in his ears over being even more restrained.

“Not so cocky anymore, hm?” Ace smirks, letting go of his leg to shuffle closer, running a warm hand up his chest and making Felix squirm.

Ace's smug expression slowly gives way to a look of pure wonder as his eyes roam all over Felix's naked body, tied up and laid out for him to do as he pleases with.

“God, look at you,” Ace murmurs fondly. “How can anyone think I'm not the luckiest man in the world when I have _this_ , all to myself?”

Despite his arousal, Felix smiles from the sweet sentiment, finally at a stage where he no longer feels neither flustered nor arrogant from being complimented. He's just grateful he has someone who appreciates him for who he is, and isn't afraid of voicing it.

If he could, he'd lean up to cup Ace's cheek and capture his lips in a soft kiss and show just how much he means to him. As it stands, he can only squirm in his restraints and give Ace a pleading look.

Something softens further in his lover's eyes, shuffling closer to place a cute peck on his cheek, all teasing gone from his voice when he speaks.

“You're doing great, darling,” Ace murmurs. “You feeling all right? Want to keep going?”

“I’m good,” Felix says with a smile. “What about you?”

“I’m absolutely fantastic,” Ace smirks. “And since you’ve been so good, I think I should reward you.”

When warm lips and harsh stubble start dragging down his chest, Felix feels his breath hitch and his dick immediately start leaking from anticipation.

The teasing kisses trail up his shaft and make him squirm, but that seems to be all he has to suffer through, Ace offering mercy and giving one last cheeky wink before his mouth sinks down on his cock.

Felix's body jolts at the pleasure and a wordless shout escapes his mouth, everything feeling much more intense than usual.

Ace takes him in to the hilt and Felix groans, hips bucking up into the amazing heat. Ace makes a chastising “nuh-uh” around his cock, but when the vibrations only turn Felix on further, his lover takes matters into his own hands and shoves his hips back down on the ground.

Questioning eyes meet his, silently asking whether this is okay, and Felix bites his lip to suppress a groan to try to hide how much he enjoys being held down.

Seeming happy with his non-answer, Ace hums in acknowledgement and picks up the pace, head bobbing on his cock and hands firmly holding Felix's hips in place.

Felix's hands twitch in their restraints, instinctively wanting to latch onto soft hair and guide Ace's head, but he _can't_. He can't even buck up into the wonderful heat, he can only lay back and take it, and if that isn't the hottest thing he's ever experienced, he doesn't know what is.

He throws his head to the side and squeezes his eyes shut, biting back a whimper, embarrassed by how much he's enjoying this.

Suddenly, Ace pulls off, and Felix is left panting and blinking in confusion.

“Come on baby, I want you to unravel for me. Don't hold back,” Ace murmurs in encouragement, his voice ragged and laced with lust, before sinking back on his dick.

Now reassured that he's allowed to enjoy this, that Ace is into this just as much as he is and doesn't think he's a weirdo, Felix groans long and loud, and that makes Ace hum in approval around his cock.

Having Ace blow him is always a little odd, because it’s the only time their sex is quiet. Felix is so used to Ace's constant stream of dirty talk and breathless praise, not to mention the silly pet names and shitty jokes, that the silence feels heavy.

Talking during sex doesn't come nearly as naturally to Felix as it does to Ace, but he decides to try.

“Don't stop,” Felix groans, his abs flexing as he tries, once again, to feebly thrust up into Ace's mouth. “It's so good.”

He gets a low rumble in Ace's throat and his lover's fingers digging into his hips for his efforts, Ace diligently keeping up the pace.

“Just like that,” Felix encourages, and it makes his face heat up even more. He feels awkward but is too turned on to really care, especially since Ace seems to enjoy it, making soft noises of encouragement.

Another jolt of pleasure surges through Felix’s body and he groans, trying to spread his legs and reminded that he can’t, only able to let his knees fall further to the side. Ace takes full advantage of the situation, one of his hands sneaking down to fondle his balls, and it adds another bit of delicious stimulation to Felix’s already high-strung body.

“Please,” Felix whines, feeling his entire body tensing up, desperately tugging on the cuffs. “I'm close—”

Ace groans obscenely around his dick and presses a thumb down just behind his balls, and the coil in Felix’s gut snaps, spilling into Ace’s mouth with a broken moan. His lover swallows without complaint, slowing his movements down to gently bob his head and work him through the release while Felix is busy panting and reveling in post-orgasmic bliss.

“Baby, darling, gorgeous,” Ace is babbling as soon as he lets Felix’s spent dick fall from his mouth. “You were so good, that was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” he murmurs, shuffling closer and placing kisses all over Felix’s chest and shoulders still glistening with sweat.

Felix chuckles stupidly, feeling so damn good and _happy_ , wanting nothing more than to wrap his amazing boyfriend in a hug before returning the favor.

“Get me out of these cuffs, and I’ll show you my appreciation,” Felix murmurs, voice rough from moaning himself stupid.

“Of course!” Ace exclaims cheerily, eagerly moving to work on the restraints on his wrists. “Are you sore?”

“A little,” Felix admits, shoulders stiff from being in the unnatural position. “But I don’t mind. It was worth it.”

When he doesn’t get a reply, not even a non-verbal one like an amused huff or cocky chuckle, he frowns in confusion.

When he hears Ace curse softly under his breath, he realizes he’s in trouble.

“Ace,” Felix warns, trying to crane his neck back to look at his lover. “What’s wrong?”

“You… wouldn’t happen to have a bobby pin on you, would you?” Ace offers with a nervous grin, and it’s like a cold shower washes over Felix.

“What,” he demands.

“I, um… might have been too eager to use the cuffs, and might have forgotten to also nick, you know… err…” Ace explains, sheepishly scratching at his neck and not meeting his eyes.

“The key,” Felix deadpans, not believing his ears.

“Yeah,” Ace grins apologetically, and Felix just stares. Of all the stupid things— “I’ll go get it right now!”

Wait, _what?_

“If you leave me like this I will string you up from the cow tree and leave you to rot, I swear to god!” Felix warns, and it’s enough to make Ace stop dead in his tracks from where he was about to bolt away.

“…Point taken,” Ace says, slowly turning to face him with a sheepish smile. “Let me dress you first.”

Felix breathes a sigh of relief as Ace returns to his side, pulling up his pants and buttoning his shirt and making sure that Felix isn’t left waiting in the middle of the forest with his dick out for the world to see.

“There, all better,” Ace pats his chest in encouragement as the last button slides closed, and Felix grumbles in annoyance. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry,” he sighs dejectedly.

“You’d better be,” Felix huffs, still not entirely sure this isn’t just another one of Ace’s pranks gone wrong. When his lover glances up at him with hurt in his eyes before quickly looking away, he instantly regrets the words. “I—didn’t mean it like that.”

“No, you’re right,” Ace sighs, all traces of his signature smile gone from his face. “I should’ve thought this through. I just wanted to do something nice for you, but now you’re stuck and in pain instead.”

“Hey,” Felix says, nudging Ace’s forehead with his own. “I’m not in pain, just a little uncomfortable. You’re fine.”

He only gets the ghost of a smile in return when Ace finally looks at him again, but it’s a smile nonetheless.

“I, um. I really enjoyed it,” Felix adds with a small grin of his own. “Just go get the key and we’ll be okay.”

And then he realizes something.

“Uhm… there _is_ a key, right?” he asks, voice cracking with uncertainty.

“Don’t worry,” Ace huffs a small laugh. “Even if there isn’t, I can pick the lock. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll borrow Jake’s bolt cutters. And if that somehow doesn’t work either, I’ll get one of Huntress’ hatchets and chop down the damn tree. And if _that_ doesn’t work—"

“I get the idea,” Felix chuckles, confident his boyfriend will at least get him out of this situation. “Go do your thing.”

“I’ll be right back, wait here,” Ace instructs and Felix snorts, raising an eyebrow. “Oh. Right. Sorry,” Ace grins sheepishly, before he makes to leave.

“Oh, and Ace?” Felix calls after him.

“Yeah?” his lover turns to him in confusion.

“If Tapp is going to smack you, tell him to wait until I’m there to see it.”


	26. Day 26: On the road

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a short one for flufftober, rated T for suggestive language and implied sexual content.

Ace jolts awake at the sound of sirens.

He feels disoriented and there's a buzzing in his ear but he needs to act quick, needs to bolt before the cops find him, hopefully there's a fire escape. He blinks the sleep from his eyes and looks around the motel room—

And sees a stretch of road in front of him, the car he's in moving at a high speed along it.

“Good morning,” someone says from his left and Ace turns to look at Felix, who is looking at him with an amused smile before turning his attention back on the road.

Right. The roadtrip.

The police car passes theirs and the last dregs of tension leave Ace's body. He's not on the run from the law in the Americas, he's driving through Europe with his boyfriend.

Felix doesn't ask why the siren instantly woke him up, but the knowing little smirk is proof enough of his perceptiveness.

Ace yawns and stretches his arms as much as the confined space will allow him.

“How long was I asleep?” he asks.

“About an hour,” Felix hums. “Though the snoring and drooling didn't start until halfway through.”

“Oh, nonsense,” Ace argues, discreetly wiping the corner of his mouth on his sleeve and indeed finding some wetness there. “Why didn't you wake me up?”

“You looked like you could use a nap,” Felix explains, before smirking again. “And I was enjoying the peace and quiet.”

“That's not what you said last night,” Ace quips.

Felix's smile fades and he bites his lip, no doubt remembering the scenario.

They'd stayed the night in Nuremburg, as it made a good halfway point and Felix wanted to show him some of the Bavarian sights.

They'd managed 20 minutes of sightseeing before spotting a cozy bar in the old town and Felix had changed his priorities from Bavarian sights to Bavarian beer.

Felix had been able to keep himself in check, nothing if not responsible, only drinking a couple of beers since he had to be in driving condition early the next morning. Ace however had no such inhibitions, and had gotten a little too drunk and a little too bold and a lot too loud. When they'd stumbled back to the hotel and started tearing off each other's clothes, Felix had done nothing but egg him on.

Hopefully the room had good soundproofing.

“Fair point,” Felix finally says, and Ace can't see his expression completely because of the sunglasses, but the redness on his cheeks is a good indicator.

Ace is still a little hungover and disoriented after his nap, but the memories of last night and his blushing boyfriend are enough for his libido to wake up faster than his brain.

Ace has never been particularly into cars but Felix looks gorgeous in his, leather jacket and leather driving gloves going with the leather interior of the car. His hair is styled loosely with a stray lock hanging off the side of his face, and combined with the few top buttons of his shirt undone it's a nice, casual look. Ace hasn't quite made up his mind whether he likes the stache or not, reminding him of a cheap porno, but with his mind already in the gutter he wouldn't mind being the co-star in this particular movie.

Felix swallows and shifts in his seat, probably because of Ace's intense staring. He doesn't know whether he's imagining it, but Felix seems to be gripping the wheel tighter than before. God, he'd want nothing more than for him to pull over and make a repeat performance of last night—

“Three hours more,” Felix says, as if reading his mind.

Three hours until they'd reach the small town in the Alps somewhere in Switzerland Ace doesn't know how to pronounce the name of. Felix had picked out the destination, telling Ace of his many childhood vacations there, skiing and doing whatever rich kids did, back when his parents were still in the picture. Ace was always much more of a beach kind of guy, not a fan of mountains or snow or skiing, but he'd go anywhere as long as he got to be with Felix.

It was also a private cabin, which was preferable to a cramped blowjob in the car.

“Alright,” Ace says, sinking back into his seat and looking out of the window to take in the rapidly passing scenery next to the autobahn.

“...Alright? Just like that?” Felix asks, seeming confused.

“I can be patient,” Ace argues half-heartedly.

“I guess miracles do happen,” Felix comments and Ace chuckles in amusement.

“Tell me about the cabin,” Ace encourages. “Is there, like… a fireplace, with a bear skin rug and a moose head on top?”

"It has a fireplace, but I'm not too sure about the animal carcasses,” Felix snorts.

Fireplace. Ace could work with a fireplace, that was a very romantic setting, right? They'd make themselves comfortable in front of it, Ace helping Felix out of his clothes, Felix’s smooth skin illuminated in a warm orange light—

“Oh, and a sauna,” Felix adds, as if an afterthought.

Felix might have said "sauna" but all Ace hears is "an excuse to get naked". Maybe they'd get back to the cabin after a day in the snow, getting rid of all their clothes and getting in the sauna. They’d instantly be surrounded by warmth and comfort, Felix relaxing as sweat trickles down his body—

“Ah, and the hot tub,” Felix seems to remember, and all Ace can do is offer an unintelligible " _Hnnnng_ " as his brain short-circuits.

“You alright, Ace?” Felix smirks knowingly.

“I am literally so horny for you,” Ace admits shamelessly.

He doesn’t really care if Felix thinks he's being ridiculous. At this point his hyperactive libido is kind of a running joke, and even though Felix often rolls his eyes and makes a snarky comment, he’s never once complained.

“Good,” Felix says instead, voice a low rumble, taking Ace off guard. He shoots a dark look over the edge of the shades. “Because we're not going to be leaving the cabin much.”

Ace also doesn't care that he whimpers in arousal, and he pretends not to notice that Felix's foot pushes harder on the gas pedal and goes over the recommended speed limit he’d been religiously following up to this point.

Suddenly, snow and mountains and an isolated cabin seem much more appealing than the beach.


	27. Day 27: Role reversal (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for kinktober, rated E for sexual content. this is my first time writing omegaverse, so if that's not your thing you might want to skip this one!

Felix curses himself for not realizing what was about to happen sooner.

He'd been feeling weird for several days, or for what constituted as days in the Entity's world. Dizziness, waves of warmth and cold intermittently washing over him, a higher sensitivity to pain.

He just thought it was some delayed reaction to the stress, his body trying its best to cope with the unnatural situation of getting repeatedly sacrificed and resurrected.

In reality, he was going into heat.

He realizes it at the campfire when another wave of nausea hits, strong enough to make him double over, his shirt drenched in sweat in just seconds under his suit jacket.

Oh, and there’s the fact that his dick is straining against his pants despite him feeling like absolute shit.

_Fuck_. Why here, why now? He hadn't even considered it to be a possibility, since none of his other bodily functions seemed to be a necessity in this world.

It's been over a decade since he last had his heat, religiously taking his suppressants. Being an omega had always been a thing he resented, knowing people wouldn't take him seriously if the information got out. Despite it being a genetic raffle, people had their prejudices, especially when it came to male omegas. Felix had never let the stereotypes stop him from doing what he wanted and _who_ he wanted, even having had a girlfriend who was a fellow omega before he got taken by the Entity.

He doesn't know whether he should tell the others or not, a couple of them already hovering around him in worry. He needs to get away, because he sure as hell can't go through a heat in the middle of camp.

“Hey buddy, how you holding up?” Steve is asking with a sympathetic grin, placing a hand on his shoulder that makes Felix recoil away, his body hypersensitive to touch. He knows that if he lets himself go unchecked, he's eventually going to enjoy attention from _anyone_.

“You still feel sick?” Jane asks, frowning in thought, and Felix knows he has to say and do _something_ before it all gets out of hand.

“I'm going into heat,” he states firmly, addressing Jane but raising his voice enough for most of the camp to hear.

There's some gasps and surprised looks when everyone's attention turns to him, the group unsure of the new situation they're presented with.

With his mind and body both hypersensitive, he has no trouble picking out the alphas of the bunch. He'd already guessed David and Ash were alphas, but he's a little surprised over Jake and Adam. He also makes out Yui's strong scent, apparently the only female alpha, which isn't shocking considering how rare they are. He doesn't have an interest in any of them, especially since David is suddenly looking at him like he's a piece of meat instead of ignoring him like usual. What a textbook alpha, with an ego to match.

No, Felix already has an idea, one that's been slowly forming for weeks, even before any influence of the heat.

“ _How?_ ” Nea asks, the first to break the silence. “We don't even get periods, how the hell are you going into heat?”

“I don't _know_ ,” Felix says through gritted teeth, a shiver wracking through his uncooperative body. “Just—I need to get away.”

“But where will you go?” Claudette is asking, panic in her voice. “We… we can help you, we'll make a nest by the fire, you don't have to be alone—”

“I won't be alone,” Felix interrupts her, and there's a sharp intake of breath when the confession clearly takes her off guard.

At least that’s what he hopes, not eager to spend the three or so days suffering on his own, but not knowing for sure until he asks. His eyes continue searching the group until he finds who he's looking for, gaze landing on warm eyes that are sympathetic but widen in surprise as soon as Felix's gaze lingers in a silent question.

Ace's eyebrows shoot comically high but he's not saying no. Felix wastes no time, knowing he doesn't have long before the hormones take over, so he walks up to Ace in determination and shrugs off the surprised comments and shocked looks from the others.

“You coming?” Felix asks, cocking his head in the direction of the forest.

“I'm a beta,” Ace says hesitantly, like that isn’t glaringly obvious to Felix. It doesn't matter to him, he's not some helpless romance novel omega who begs for an alpha's cock to cure him.

“And?” Felix says, impatience starting to get the better of him. He just wants to get away from prying eyes and hopefully have time to _talk_ about this, to find out what Ace is okay with before he's delirious from lust and not in his right mind to think about boundaries.

“Lead the way,” Ace says with a smile, doubts successfully reassured.

Felix is grateful Ace isn't making a big deal out of this, doing a good job of hiding his initial surprise of both Felix being an omega and choosing him as his bedmate. Although he definitely hears some shocked murmurs from their friends as he leads Ace into the woods, he knows he can deal with them later.

And maybe it _is_ weird to suddenly proposition your... friend? Acquaintance? In front of everybody because of a dumb biological quirk. But Felix didn't even have to think twice, somehow knowing Ace wouldn't push him away or make derogatory comments or read too much into it. He's flirted with Felix plenty, and Felix would probably have made a move eventually, but since his body demanded he do something _now_ , he might as well go along with it.

He finds a spot that's as good as any, under a big tree that offers at least a modicum of privacy with its low-hanging branches. As on cue, Felix feels a familiar _something_ start trickling out of him and knows he's running out of time.

“Okay, I realize this isn't the ideal situation,” he starts, turning to Ace who has been way more quiet than he's used to because of the unconventional predicament. “But I only have a couple of minutes at most before my brain is going to turn itself off and forget about every single inhibition, so if there's anything you need to say to sober Felix, now's the time.”

“Well, first of all, I'm flattered,” Ace jokes, a silly grin on his face like they're not about to begin a fuck marathon despite never even kissing before. “Second, you should know I've never seen a heat before. You'll need to tell me what to do.”

“And _you_ need to say ‘no’ if you don't want to do something,” Felix insists. “What are you okay with? Topping? Bottoming? Blow— _hnng_ ,” he groans, another shiver wracking his body and making his dick throb, unnecessary modesty leaving right alongside his dignity as the lust takes over. “B-blowjobs? Eating ass?”

“Fuck, all of the above,” Ace murmurs, his eyes darkening from lust as Felix fights his own arousal. Ace's hand twitches at his side but he doesn't touch him, not without permission, and Felix knows he made a great decision in bringing him along.

“Good, because we're going through the entire list,” Felix says, breathless from arousal, practically throwing himself at Ace and going in for a sloppy kiss that the other eagerly responds to.

He's happy to note that Ace is a great kisser, easily coaxing Felix's hurried lips into a much more sensual pace that manages to calm his beating heart just the tiniest amount.

And then there's a tongue leisurely stroking over his own and a hand gently tangling in his hair, and Felix whimpers into the kiss as he feels himself start dripping from arousal. God, he can already tell Ace is going to be so good to him, helping him through the heat, and Felix will be a good little omega—

Fuck, it's already starting. He probably needs to warn Ace about his impending personality shift, since the heat mindset is so different from his usual character. Ace might get spooked or even worried, especially if he's never seen a heat up close before.

“Just a warning,” Felix starts, pulling away from the kiss and trying to collect his scattered thoughts. “I'm going to get very… submissive. Don't let it freak you out.”

“I appreciate the heads up, but you don't have to worry about me,” Ace smiles, way more calm about the entire situation that Felix had anticipated, hands slipping under his shirt to calmly explore his back. “As long as you're into it, I'm into it. We're doing this on your terms, baby.”

Felix bites his lip and feels both his dick and ass spasm and leak from the words, his stupid hormones making him feel _cherished_ and _cared for_ from just some basic sexual courtesy.

Damn it, he needs to get out of his pants if he doesn't want to ruin them by leaking from both ends.

“Get naked and lay down for me,” Felix commands, already working on his own belt.

“Bossy, too,” Ace smirks but does as he's told, immediately going to unbutton his shirt. “I like it.”

Felix's pants slide off and he takes a small satisfaction in the way the cocky smirk falters on Ace's face as he inhales sharply.

Even though Ace isn't an alpha, the smell of an omega in heat is impossible to ignore from this close, especially since Felix is now naked and already dripping down his thighs.

His scent works as intended, as the tent in Ace's pants grows significantly. Felix would mirror the man's earlier smirk if he was in his right mind, but now the sight just makes him whine in anticipation and more goo to leak from his ass. Ace stares, transfixed, as a droplet makes its way down his thigh, fingers having paused on unbuttoning his shirt.

“Hurry,” Felix whispers desperately, eyes glued to the bulge in the other's pants, and Ace springs into action.

He fumbles with the last two buttons and Felix's patience runs out, grabbing a handful of the shirt and ripping the garment off of him, buttons clattering to the ground.

Ace stares, mouth slightly parted, and Felix belatedly realizes he might be mad.

“Okay, that was hot,” Ace breathes in awe, and Felix can tune his brain right back into the horny channel with a good conscience.

“Pants. _Now_ ,” he demands, already tugging down the garment as Ace curses in his native tongue and hurries to unzip them.

After a little bit of fumbling, Ace is fully naked before him, and Felix wastes no time to push him down to the ground, maybe a little bit too forcefully from the way Ace yelps in surprise.

Normally he'd go much slower, and take his time exploring his partner's naked body, but his own has already made up its mind and when his eyes land on Ace's cock, he can't focus on anything else.

“Let me ride you,” Felix breathes, climbing on top of Ace to straddle his thighs, eager hands finding his lover's hard dick. It feels perfect in his hands, the tip flushed from arousal, and more slick leaks out of him as he imagines how good it would feel inside him. His rational side thankfully hasn’t completely given up, able to fight his body long enough to wait for Ace's permission.

“Fuck baby, go ahead,” Ace groans, hips raising into Felix's touch, and that’s all the confirmation he needs.

Felix lifts himself up and lines his dripping hole with Ace's cock, immediately starting to slide it in, moaning over the delicious, wet stretch as the tip enters him and finally gives him what he craves—

“Wait wait wait,” Ace suddenly says and Felix sobs over the agony of having to stop, hoping Ace didn't change his mind because he feels like he might actually die if he has this taken away from him. He looks at Ace in frustration, ready to call him a few choice words for being a tease— “What about prep?” Ace says instead, a tinge of worry in his eyes even as his body trembles from anticipation.

Felix snorts, finding it amusing that he feels and no doubt also _looks_ like someone poured an entire bottle of lube into his ass, and Ace is somehow still worried. Still, it's a sweet gesture, and he's once again thankful his intuition allowed him to choose such a considerate lover.

Now reassured Ace isn't freaking out, Felix is eager to show just what an omega in heat is capable of. Without warning, he drops down and spears himself on Ace’s cock in one smooth motion, the heat making his body easily open to the intrusion and causing him to let out an obscene moan over how good it feels.

“P-point taken,” Ace says shakily, hands settling on Felix's hips while he takes a few shaky breaths.

Felix starts slowly rolling his hips, an unconscious part of his mind wanting this to last despite being so turned on he can hardly think straight.

His shirt is hiked up for Ace to get a better view, and Felix only then realizes he didn't even bother getting fully undressed, too hungry for cock to care about removing anything but the bare necessities.

“God, you look amazing,” Ace says, voice breathless from arousal, and Felix moans at the praise, clenching down on the hard cock inside of him.

And then he nearly screams when Ace grabs his neglected and almost painfully hard dick.

“That's it, gorgeous,” Ace murmurs, thumb stroking over his leaking slit. “You're doing so well.”

Felix whimpers at the praise and slick gushes out of his ass with a wet squelch, Ace's grip on both his dick and around his hip tightening.

“You smell so fucking good,” Ace groans, eyes glazing over in lust as Felix's pheromones work their magic. “You've got to let me eat you out after this.”

The request makes Felix's head swim even more, moans rising in pitch as he picks up the pace and slams himself down on Ace's cock, an obscene wet slap echoing in their little bubble of privacy.

His entire body is on fire and he wants to come, _needs_ to come, but there's something missing, like an itch he can’t scratch—

“F-fuck, I'm close,” Ace grunts under him and Felix nearly unravels right then and there, needing the reassurance that he's a good omega that properly pleasured his partner.

“Inside,” he mewls, throwing his head back and rhythmically squeezing the cock inside of him, trying to forcibly milk the cum out of it. “I need it in me, please—fuck me, fill me, _use_ me,” Felix blabbers incoherently, the heat having completely taken over his thinking, unconsciously arching his back to present.

Ace curses and lets Felix's cock fall out of his hand in favor of grabbing his ass with both hands, spreading the cheeks and thrusting up _hard_. Felix's voice is reduced to a wail, a steady string of “yes”, “please” and “harder” while he claws at Ace's chest and his body tenses in anticipation.

And then it pays off because Ace comes with a gasp that sounds almost pained, hips stilling with his cock buried deep and emptying inside of him.

As soon as Felix feels the warmth of the release gush into his ass, he comes with a happy whine, a twisted part of his biology that he has no control over wanting to be bred like a dog.

For a few seconds, everything is blurry and white, and then the heat-induced buzz starts clearing from around his brain and Felix has a moment of clarity.

The first thing he notices is that he's painted Ace's chest white with splatters of his cum. The second is that there's no inconvenient knot stuck inside of him to prevent him from moving. And the third is that Ace is really fucking handsome even without the heat hormones brainwashing him.

“How—” Ace starts with a raspy voice, before clearing his throat. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I'm sane again,” Felix sighs and shifts slightly, relishing in both the clarity in his mind and the feeling of the softening dick inside of him. “Probably only for a few minutes, though. You up for more?”

“I doubt I'll be 'up' anytime soon, but I'm definitely on board with anything else,” Ace snorts.

“Thank you,” Felix sighs in relief and debates whether it's still okay to kiss him or not.

“Nah sweetheart, I'm the one who should be thanking _you_ ,” Ace protests, running his hands down Felix's sides and looking up at him with a lazy smirk. “You blew my mind.”

Felix smiles and thinks to himself that's definitely not the only thing he'll be blowing, but better leave that for Ace to find out by himself.


	28. Day 28: Nightmares

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for cocktober, rated M for mild sexual content and implied (past) rape and mutilation.

Felix jolts awake at the sound of a shocked gasp and a flurry of movement. His body is on high alert before even waking up properly, frantically looking around—

And spotting Ace next to him, propped up on his elbows and looking more spooked than Felix has seen in quite some time. From the way he exhales in relief and wipes a hand over his face, it’s not hard to guess what’s wrong, but Felix asks nonetheless.

“What’s the matter?” he murmurs quietly, as not to wake the others.

The other survivors are laying scattered around camp, fast asleep. Where Felix is resting now has been established as Ace’s spot way before he got here, surrounded by piles of looted items and a trunk overflowing with colorful clothes, a rock and some tress providing a small degree of privacy from the campfire. Felix is not exactly sure when he started sleeping here or when he started storing some of his own clothes in the chest. It’s been a gradual process, and it still is, but it’s gotten to the point where it feels _wrong_ if he sleeps anywhere else.

They don’t really cuddle, or at least don’t call it that. But sleeping next to each other provides desperately needed comfort in the hopelessness of the fog, and just feeling the warmth radiating from another human being has improved Felix’s sleeping pattern tenfold.

“Just a bad dream,” Ace sighs, staring up at the perpetual night sky while he calms down from the nightmare.

Felix hums in acknowledgement and scoots closer, until he’s laying pressed up against Ace’s side, making the executive decision that the situation warrants breaking the unspoken barrier between them. Neither of them are strangers to nightmares, the horrors of being chased and killed in trials often following them to their dreams.

“Do you want me to make it better?” Felix murmurs against Ace’s temple, his hand snaking down to run along the seam of Ace’s pants, tracing the outline of his dick.

It certainly wouldn’t be the first time they’ve distracted each other this way after a bad dream or even just a rough trial. Felix doesn’t know what exactly it is that they have, initially just falling into bed together and now content to also seek out comfort in each other’s arms, being more than friends but not quite lovers.

“No,” Ace says, gently removing Felix’s hand and making his thought process screech to a halt at the unexpected answer.

It’s the first time Ace has turned down sex; normally, he’s ecstatic when Felix makes the first move. Usually, there’s a split second of confusion, like he still can’t quite believe Felix would want _him_ , of all people, quickly followed by a smug grin and witty retort about falling for his charms.

Now, there’s no surprise or cockiness or even the hint of a smile on Ace’s face. He merely averts his tired eyes and turns his back on Felix, curling in on himself in a very atypical manner. Felix probably shouldn’t read into the rejection, but he does, a nagging sensation in the back of his mind screaming that this isn’t just Ace not being in the mood. Something is _wrong_.

“Are you alright?” Felix asks, placing a hesitant hand on Ace’s back.

There’s no answer, but Felix can make out Ace’s cheek moving, like he’s opening and closing his mouth but failing to make any words come out. Ace being at a loss for words is another big warning sign that he isn’t himself.

“Do you want me to leave?” Felix suggests. Leaving Ace alone is the last thing he wants, but he’s not about to intrude. Even if his own feelings toward the man extend deeper than lust, that decision isn’t up to him to make alone.

“No,” Ace says quietly, so much more meek than Felix has ever heard before. “But you probably should, since everyone around me just ends up hurt.”

Pushing through the other’s sudden self-deprecating attitude and focusing on the fact that Ace _doesn’t_ want him to leave, Felix shuffles even closer, until his chest is flush with Ace’s back.

“Do you want to talk about the dream?” Felix murmurs against Ace’s neck, wrapping an arm around his tense body.

“It…” Ace hesitates, exhaling shakily. “It wasn’t about a trial. It was from before.”

Felix hums in acknowledgement and brings his hand up to run in gentle circles over Ace’s chest, trying to encourage him to continue.

“I got into gambling when I was fifteen,” Ace starts, and it’s not how Felix anticipated this story beginning, but he stays quiet. “I had crazy beginner’s luck, won so much more than I’d made working as an errand boy. Mama wasn’t happy, but we could finally get the leaking roof fixed so she didn’t protest too much.”

Felix nuzzles into the nape of Ace’s neck, placing what he hopes is a reassuring kiss into the baby hairs he finds there. Ace being from a less fortunate background than himself was never something that had been explicitly discussed, but Felix was smart enough to read between the lines and make his own assumptions. Ace seemed to have realized this too, as he doesn’t feel the need to elaborate on his family’s situation.

“But then the luck ran out,” Ace says quietly, still facing the other way and making Felix strain his ears to hear him properly. “And I still wanted to keep playing. I spent everything I’d won and mama wouldn’t let me borrow from her—smart woman. She told me I should be grateful God had blessed us with enough to make life easier, if only for a little while, and that I was being greedy. I told her God hadn’t ever done shit for us and where she could shove her crucifix.”

Despite the somber tone in Ace’s voice, Felix smiles against his neck. He recognizes that same rebellion from his own teenage years, a constant that seems to be the same no matter a person’s background or socioeconomic status.

“So when my mom wouldn’t help me, I found people who did,” Ace tells him. “Bad people.”

Ace draws a shaky breath and Felix can slowly start to see where this is going. Part of him wants to ask Ace to stop because the memories are clearly making him upset, but he doesn’t dare interrupt, barely even _breathes_ as not to disrupt the vulnerable moment.

“I was a bratty kid, at that age where you think you’re the most enlightened person in the world and can easily outsmart the adults. I was so sure I’d managed to trick them into giving me money, and even if they did find me, I’d outwit them in seconds and lose them in the backstreets. I felt invincible, you know?” Ace explains, a manic tone in his voice.

“They warned me, and I didn’t listen. I didn’t listen to anyone, too lost in my own cocky little head,” Ace continues, talking about himself with bitterness Felix has never noticed before. “Even when I lost the money and knew I had no way of paying it back, I wasn’t worried. I’d always managed to either slip away or talk my way out of trouble. They’d never get me, and I knew it.”

“What happened?” Felix asks.

“They got _her_ instead,” Ace whispers so quietly Felix nearly misses it.

“Did they kill her?” Felix asks. Ace goes dead silent and rigid in his arms, and Felix doesn’t know if he wants to hear the answer.

“I almost wish they did.”

Felix’s blood runs cold and Ace starts trembling violently in his arms.

“I still have nightmares about… when I found mama, after, and she—” Ace chokes out, no longer able to suppress the sob wracking his body. “There’s things so much worse than death,” he whispers and buries his face in his hands.

“I’m so sorry,” Felix murmurs, holding Ace tighter against himself while the normally carefree man sobs quietly in his arms.

Felix thought he’d had a rough time when his parents disappeared when he was still a teenager, but for Ace to have gone through something like that? It was something no child should ever have to experience.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Felix says, nose buried in the crook between Ace’s neck and shoulder.

“Right,” Ace laughs without any mirth, a broken sound that feels _wrong_ , coming from the witty mouth known for its silly jokes and warm laughter. “There sure as hell wasn’t any question about it, not after they _carved_ —” he pauses on a pained whimper and curls in tighter on himself.

Felix always considered himself somewhat unattached and cynical after the loss of his parents, but the sheer agony that the memory brings up in Ace makes his heart break. He wants so desperately to help, but the only thing he can do is hold Ace while he weeps.

The sobs sound pained and Felix can tell Ace is struggling with letting himself cry, especially in front of someone else. He’s never seen Ace cry before, the closest thing being the hisses and grunts while injured in a trial. Normally he’d feel awkward and out of place when faced with such raw emotion, but now? He wants nothing more than to comfort Ace in his grief.

“You were just a child. You couldn’t have known,” Felix reassures as the sobbing seems to calm down.

“What the hell’s the matter with you!?” Ace suddenly demands. In an instant, he’s flipping around to stare at Felix with angry eyes red from crying while clutching Felix shirt in a death grip. Felix freezes, not expecting Ace to lash out like that, cursing himself for upsetting the man further—

“I just told you what a garbage human being I am. You should _hate_ me!” Ace says instead, mad at himself and not Felix.

Easily seeing the hurt under the perceived anger, Felix calmly meets the gaze and gently starts untangling Ace’s shaking hands from his shirt.

“Even if I don’t know how to put in words how I feel about you, I can tell you with absolute certainty that ‘hate’ is far from it,” Felix murmurs. “Don’t push me away because you’re afraid.”

He knows that if Ace was in his right mind and not shaken to the core from the trauma, he’d laugh and protest the notion of ever being scared, assuring that’s not something within the range of his emotions because “Flirting with danger is my middle name, baby!”.

Instead, he swallows and blinks some resurfacing wetness from his eyes.

“I don’t deserve this. Not you, and not them,” Ace croaks, glancing toward where their friends are still blissfully sleeping. “This is supposed to be karma. My punishment. You’re not supposed to make me feel—”

He hesitates, and Felix takes it as a sign to keep pushing.

“Feel like what?” he insists.

“Like I’m… anywhere near a _decent_ person,” Ace says. “All my life, I’ve done nothing but hurt everyone around me and used people for my own gain.”

Felix knows this, and Ace has never tried to hide his background, gleefully sharing tales about his life as a con artist. Felix also inherently dislikes people in general and based on how stupidly they’d let themselves be swindled, he had no sympathy to spare for a rich businessman not unlike himself losing a couple days’ worth of salary that wouldn’t even make a dent in their wealth.

“For as long as I’ve known you, you’ve been nothing but kind and supportive,” Felix argues. “Who cares what you did before when you risk your life to save us every day?”

“But—” Ace tries to argue, stubborn as ever, so Felix captures his lips in a kiss just to get him to shut up.

He aims to keep the kiss short and sweet, an innocent press of lips just to calm Ace’s spiraling thoughts, since pressuring the distressed man into anything is the last thing he wants to do.

When he goes to pull away, Ace makes a sound of protest low in his throat and chases his lips. Diving back in, Felix happily gives in to Ace’s eager lips and insistent tongue, getting lost in a desperate kiss that lights his veins on fire.

Ace always tells him that actions speak louder than words, and since they’re both excellent liars, maybe he has a point. There’s nothing subtle about the way Ace kisses him and pulls him closer, his body screaming _I need you_ and _please don’t leave me_ , a stark contrast to his earlier insistence that Felix should abandon him for his own good.

His own hands move as of their own accord, stroking Ace’s stubbled jaw and cupping the back of his head, doing his best to convey _I’m here for you_ and _I’m not going anywhere_.

When they pull apart, Felix searches deep brown eyes for any lingering doubts, but only finds affection and—

“Jesus, I’m a mess,” Ace huffs out a small laugh and averts his eyes.

—Embarrassment.

“Thank you,” Felix says, placing a small kiss on Ace’s forehead.

Ace tenses up but doesn’t question the sentiment, the unsaid “for trusting me” hanging in the air.

“Yeah,” Ace exhales, the tension seeping out from his body as he nuzzles into Felix’s neck to hide his tear-streaked face. “You too.”

Felix wraps his arms around Ace and smiles. He’s relieved the crisis seems to be successfully averted, but he’s also grateful for Ace finally opening up to him. He always knew there was more to the man than the permanent smile and endless flirty jokes, and he feels privileged to have gotten a glimpse of it.

“So, about that handjob…" a voice partly muffled by his shirt pipes up, and Felix can’t suppress a chuckle.

Felix’s mouth finds lips that are smiling again and his hand travels down Ace’s body, swallowing quiet moans as he finds what he’s looking for. He doesn’t even realize how much he needs this, not until deft fingers make quick work of his own belt buckle.

After, Ace almost immediately falls back asleep, still curled up against him. And Felix isn’t really surprised to notice that the closer he is to Ace, the better he sleeps through the night.

Like he said. Gradual process.


	29. Day 29: Praise kink (NSFW)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for kinktober, rated M for sexual content, no warnings

The first time, it’s an accident.

Felix has Ace pressed up against a tree, one hand tangled in his hair while the other roughly strokes his dick. It’s rushed; Felix isn’t even out of his pants yet and Ace’s ones are unbuttoned just the bare minimum, but it’s what they both need. Ace clings to Felix’s shirt, nails digging into skin while he groans into the kiss, and it causes the last of Felix’s inhibitions to fly out of the window.

He doesn’t know why he says it, a cliché sentiment he’s only heard in porn, but he’s too horny to care.

“ _Good boy_ ,” Felix pulls away just enough to murmur, his voice a deep rumble against Ace’s lips.

Ace gasps and then his entire body trembles as he spills into Felix’s hand. Felix, confused, takes in the scene of his now stained hand and quietly panting lover.

Huh. What a weird coincidence.

The second time, he still doesn’t connect the dots.

They’re hiding from the Nurse behind a rock in Shelter Woods. Ace is injured, having recently been unhooked after previously running the killer for several generators, and Felix nearly finished healing him before the Nurse had returned to try and capitalize on her weakened prey.

For as much of a loudmouth as Ace normally is, he’s surprisingly quiet when injured, gritting his teeth and controlling his breathing to try to handle the pain.

“That’s it, you’re doing great,” Felix whispers absently, an encouraging hand on his lover’s shoulder while he peers around the rock to try to spot the killer patrolling the area. “I’ll heal you as soon as it’s safe. You did such a good job—"

And then Ace interrupts him by letting out a loud groan, making the Nurse perk up and look around on high alert. Felix curses and turns his full attention to calm Ace down so he doesn’t give away their position.

“Come on, just a little longer. You were doing so good, you can do this—” Felix prattles on in a somewhat panicked whisper.

“Shut _up_ ,” Ace hisses, seeming more annoyed than in pain, fidgeting in his seat. Felix frowns and looks him over—

Until his eyes land on a very obvious tent in Ace’s pants.

“You’ve _got_ to be kidding me,” Felix says. “Do you really think this is the time!?"

And now _he’s_ being the loud one, because after just the blink of an eye there’s a very angry Nurse materializing in front of them and raising her bonesaw, and Felix barely has the time to throw himself in the way of the swing meant for Ace as they both take off in a sprint.

The third time, he finally realizes what’s going on.

“God, you’re gorgeous,” Ace is grinning at him while running his mouth like usual, a steady stream of flirty compliments between kisses and tugging off each other’s clothes. “So handsome,” _kiss_ , “so perfect. How did I ever get this lucky?”

Normally, Felix would roll his eyes at the over-the-top cheesy lines, or at most shoot back a half-assed “you’re not exactly ugly either” as not to feed Ace’s enormous ego any more than necessary. But this time, he’s not in the mood to tease, not after the rough trial they just had against a camping Leatherface.

“You’re beautiful,” Felix says instead. He instantly regrets it when Ace goes completely silent and stops unbuttoning Felix’s shirt. _Shit_ , was it that lame? Did he completely kill the mood?

“Can you…” Ace finally starts after an uncomfortable silence, his voice unusually unsteady. Why is he suddenly so meek? Why is he breathing like he just ran the killer around an entire map? And why is he blushing—

Oh. _Oh_.

Suddenly, the puzzle pieces click into place in Felix’s brain and the weird events of the last few weeks start making sense.

“Do you want to hear more about how _good_ you are?” Felix murmurs, dropping his voice low to test the waters.

He half expects a cocky laugh or some good-natured teasing from having read the situation wrong. Instead, he gets a sound that instantly becomes his new favorite thing in the world.

“ _Please_ ,” Ace begs in a broken whine and Felix immediately forgets his previous embarrassment.

Felix has never been good at dirty talk, feeling awkward about it even in his native tongue, so it takes him off guard just how easily he slips into the role when he has such a responsive partner. Every compliment seems to reduce his cocky boyfriend into a groaning, ineloquent mess, and soon Felix finds himself balls-deep and effortlessly grunting how _good_ Ace looks and how _perfect_ he feels and how _well_ he’s taking his cock.

After, when there’s laying next to each other and catching their breaths and Ace leans over to murmur an earnest “ _thank you_ ”, there’s only one thought on Felix’s mind:

Why the hell didn’t he do this sooner?

He never noticed Ace gets his rocks off on being praised. But then again, he always assumed the man had more than enough confidence, seeming to thrive on jokes and banter at his own expense that others might have found insulting. A running joke among the survivors, one that Felix was also guilty of participating in, was that Ace would make a flirty remark or cheesy compliment and be met with exasperation or faux disgust.

Maybe Ace complimented others so freely because he wanted someone to do the same to him?

Ace lets out a surprised “oof” when Felix pulls him into a bone-crushing hug. He doesn’t explain and Ace doesn’t ask, and Felix silently vows to be a better boyfriend.

And as a good boyfriend, he tries not to abuse his newfound power.

He can’t deny it doesn’t come in handy, though. If Ace seems a little out of it, being chewed out by Feng and Nea after a trial gone wrong and trying to defuse with jokes and a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes, it only takes a firm hand on his back and a whispered “don’t listen to them, I know you did your best” from Felix to reassure him.

Conversely, if Ace is being a little shit, teasing Felix with quick wit and banter he can’t quite keep up with, pulling him close and breathing “teasing me won’t change what a _good boy_ you are for me” into his ear is a surefire way to get his upstairs brain to shut down.

Since Ace isn’t protesting, reactions only ranging from a pleased grin to an aroused groan, Felix decides to be a little bolder and a lot dumber.

The opportunity eventually presents itself when he’s approaching Ace in a trial, his boyfriend hanging on his first hook while the Trapper is busy with a looping Nea and hiding Claudette on the other side of the map.

As soon as Felix reaches out to unhook him, Ace starts running his mouth.

“Took your sweet time,” his lover grins. “Too busy fondling the lever side of a generator again?”

In an instant, Felix pulls his hands away as a _very_ bad idea forms in his head.

“Remember our last trial, when you let me go into struggle so you could get that brown toolbox from a chest?” Felix challenges with a raised eyebrow.

“It could have been a skeleton key!” Ace shoots back. “You’re not still mad about that, right, baby?”

“How could I? Especially since you’re so _good_ at scavenging,” Felix says, and Ace’s eyes momentarily widen when he recognizes Felix’s voice dropping into a familiar tone. “Just… hang tight while I tell you about my _appreciation_.”

“Fuck,” Ace curses under his breath, glancing at the hook and then in the direction of the killer and their teammates, but he’s not protesting.

“Look how handsome you are, even when dangling from a hook," Felix murmurs, letting his gaze roam over his lover's body. “And you're even wearing my favorite shirt. What a good boy.”

Ace whimpers and squeezes his eyes shut, and Felix hears the Entity prepare for the next stage of the sacrifice.

“Open your eyes darling, here comes the spider queen,” Felix warns, not wanting Ace to accidentally end up sacrificed due to his teasing.

Ace does as requested, and when the Entity descends, he stops the claw aiming for his chest and commences the struggle of pushing against it.

“Good work,” Felix praises, stepping closer to run his hand up Ace's torso and feel the muscles flexing from the effort. “You're so _strong_ , I know you can do it.”

Ace's breath seems to hitch from more than just the effort of struggling, and, tellingly, he's awfully quiet.

Until Felix's hand brushes against a very obvious erection in his pants.

“Please—” Ace whines and his hips buck up into the touch, the lapse in attention making the Entity's claw slip closer to its goal.

“Focus, sweetheart,” Felix coos, using some of Ace's own silly pet names against him. “Wouldn't want such a gorgeous body to get swept from my arms into the sky.”

Ace swallows and nods, concentrating his efforts back on what he was doing while Felix keeps a ghosting touch over his dick. He should probably get Ace down soon, but... just _one_ more couldn’t hurt, right?

Ace’s mouth falls open from the pleasure and Felix, impulsively, leans up to lick at his lover’s trembling bottom lip.

“Can't wait to have that pretty mouth of yours wrapped around my cock,” he breathes huskily against Ace's mouth.

Ace groans and leans his head back into the hook, his eyes rolling into the back of his head and his grip on the Entity's claw turning white-knuckled.

Felix knows that if the roles were reversed, Ace would leave him struggling until the very last second, but Felix has never been much of a risk taker. So, satisfied with the reaction, he lifts Ace down from the contraption with plenty of time to spare.

“ _You_ ,” Ace hisses between clenched teeth, glaring at him as soon as his feet land safely on the ground. “Are in so much trouble.”

Felix almost thinks he’s pushed too far, an apology ready on his tongue, when Ace’s mouth crashes into his own with a desperation he’s never experienced before.

So maybe he didn’t exactly think this through, but he doesn’t protest when Ace drags him into a locker without even pausing to let Felix patch up his wounds.

As Ace proceeds to show him just how pent up he is, Felix is surprised the locker rattling isn’t loud enough to alert the killer and drown out the dying screams of their teammates.

He knows they’re going to get a expletive-filled lecture by Nea, but he’s already decided they’re definitely doing this again.


	30. Day 30: You had to be there

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for flufftober, rated T for mild sexual content, warning for vomiting mentions.

”—and on my last card, lo and behold, I draw the queen of hearts!” Ace tells one of his famous and overly exaggerated stories, gesturing vividly with his hands. “First one in the history of the tournament to win with a royal flush! Not only did I get the jackpot, the organizers were so impressed, they even threw in a paid trip to Vegas, and the hotel manager’s daughter practically fell into my lap—"

“And then the entire room stood up and clapped,” Felix deadpans, not buying 90% of the story’s contents.

“Oh, screw you! You had to be there,” Ace grins and nudges Felix with his elbow before taking another sip of his drink.

They’re sitting in the lodge in Ormond, one of the moth-eaten couches providing more comfort than anything Felix has experienced after arriving in the limbo that is the Entity’s world. The generator by the staircase has been outfitted by a very strange but very welcome addition, containers of surprisingly strong margarita mixtures sitting on top of the machine.

Felix had been confused beyond belief but Ace had smiled with glee and dragged him closer to repair it, apparently familiar with the strange contraption from a time before Felix.

The killer, the Legion girl with pink hair, had stopped by enough for Ace to smooth-talk her into leaving them alone, promises of “Think about the parties you and your friends can have! But you need us to fix it first!” enough to sway her.

Felix hears another pallet being slammed in the distance from where the killer is still farming with their remaining teammates. Laurie and Dwight had both dropped by the lodge, but neither was a fan of drinking, Laurie’s face scrunching up in disgust from a tiny sip while Dwight went pale just from the mention of alcohol, so the two had opted to finish the remaining generators instead.

Which suited Felix just fine. It meant there was more booze for him, and it also meant he got to spend time alone with Ace.

Felix hadn’t needed any convincing to stay in the lodge and enjoy the fruits of their labor while the younger survivors distracted the killer. Ace had found some mugs for them, and even if margarita had never been Felix’s choice of drink and the mugs were dusty and had questionable stains, it was the best day of his life in the fog.

He hadn’t protested when Ace had sat down next to him on the couch despite there being several empty ones available, and for once he didn’t mind the never-ending stream of bullshit coming out of the gambler’s mouth. It reminded Felix of something he hadn’t had in years, a casual night out in a pub to get a few drinks and shoot the shit with his friends, his responsibilities and family’s dark secrets momentarily forgotten.

Well. With one notable difference.

He’d never wanted to pull his other friends into his arms and shut their laughing mouths up with a kiss.

He could blame it on the alcohol, but despite being an excellent liar, he’d never quite been able to fool himself. He’d caught himself looking at Ace more often, seeking out his company both in trials and in camp, and even smiling much more than he used to.

But that was irrelevant, because Ace had made it abundantly clear that he wasn’t interested in Felix like that, seeming to somehow flirt with everyone _but_ Felix. He tried not to take it personally.

“God, this—this stuff really creeps up on you, huh?” Ace says, a lopsided grin on his face and swaying just the tiniest amount in his seat.

“Didn’t take you for a lightweight,” Felix muses, feeling the buzz of the alcohol in his system but handling his liquor much better than Ace.

“Hey now! I’ve been sober for four years,” Ace points out, jamming an accusing finger into Felix’s chest.

“Fair point,” Felix agrees, trying to ignore the worry over how long they’re going to be stuck in this world.

Ace lets out a pleased sigh and lays his head on Felix’s shoulder, and Felix decides to take a few notes from the carefree man and try his best to enjoy the moment.

He’s thankful for this small break in their stressful lives, for once not having to constantly look over their shoulders in trials or be surrounded by twenty other people struggling to get along at the campfire. It feels like they’ve been talking for hours and Felix is still far from bored, enjoying the alcohol that has allowed him to loosen up and keep up with Ace’s banter, sharing several laughs with the man.

Even if said banter has gotten gradually more slurred and their laughs more giggly.

It also doesn’t hurt that the more Ace has to drink, the more he insists on constantly touching him, oblivious to how he’s testing Felix’s self-restraint with the casual touches that linger a little too long.

“This is nice,” Ace muses, cupping his mug close to his chest.

“I liked the lime one better,” Felix says, looking into his own mug at the remaining melted sludge of a strawberry margarita.

“No—I mean yeah, the booze is nice too,” Ace says, shifting against his shoulder. “But I meant _this_. Talking and… stuff.”

He ends the sentence on a hiccup and a snicker, which Felix finds hilarious compared to his usual snarky wit and eloquent stories, and so he snorts in amusement. Unfortunately, some of his drink spills out of his nose at the action, proving that maybe, just _maybe_ , Ace isn’t the only one who is drunk.

“Cute,” Ace comments, because of course _this_ is something he noticed through the drunken haze.

“Shut up,” Felix grumbles and lightly shoves at him while discreetly wiping some stray strawberry splatters from his face and suit.

“Why don’t _you_ shut me up?” Ace challenges, making Felix pause from cleaning himself up.

He looks down at Ace, still laying his head on Felix’s shoulder, watching him with warm, brown eyes.

“What?” Felix says, and it comes out barely above a whisper. Fuck, he’s more drunk than he thought, because surely Ace doesn’t mean—

“Kiss me,” Ace challenges.

Felix’s brain activity shuts down. He _should_ be concerned about Ace’s sudden interest in him, that he’s too drunk to know what he’s asking for, or that it’s just a joke that goes way over Felix’s head.

Instead, he immediately seizes the opportunity, capturing smiling lips in a sloppy kiss. Ace doesn’t protest, in fact he moans into Felix’s mouth and uncoordinated hands come up to tangle in Felix’s hair, eager lips moving against his own. Felix feels even more disoriented than before, making some sort of noise between a moan and a grunt, lost in sharp stubble dragging against his chin and a mouth that tastes of strawberries and rum.

Ace lets out a slightly drunk and very aroused whimper and Felix finds himself pushing him to lay down on the couch, never breaking the delicious liplock. Strawberry suddenly seems like the best flavor in the entire goddamn _universe_.

His hands roam all over Ace’s body but he’s too eager to be able to take it all in, focused on how _warm_ and _comforting_ his body is and how perfectly their lips fit against each other’s. When Felix brushes against a definitive hardness in Ace’s pants and is rewarded by a deep moan, his explorations comes to a halt as he focuses on stroking that particular area.

There’s a small voice in his head that screams this is a bad idea, but Felix can’t remember _why_ , not when Ace is groaning into his mouth and clawing at his back in encouragement. His hips raise to grind up into Felix’s hand, and Felix has never wanted to suck a dick so bad in his life. He wants to make Ace feel good, wants to make him _scream_ —

“ _Hrk_ ,” is suddenly grunted against his lips, and it’s enough to give him pause.

Felix’s alcohol- and lust-filled brain doesn’t recognize the voice but thank god his unconsciousness does, because he barely has time to pull back from the kiss before Ace is scrambling to turn around and hurling over the side of the couch.

_Well_. That’s one way to ruin the moment.

Seeing the man you were just kissing puking an evening’s worth of fruity drinks on the carpet is enough to kill even Felix’s boner. When he glances over and sees a disgusting puddle of _something_ , feeling nausea bubbling up in his own gut, he quickly averts his eyes and focuses on awkwardly patting Ace’s back instead.

As soon as Ace has finished retching, taking deep breaths to calm himself, Felix hears footsteps approaching.

Of course the Legion girl has chosen this particular moment to return to check on them. Felix watches as she takes one look at Ace leaned over the side of the couch and the pool of vomit on the floor, before gripping her knife tight and raising her mask to glare at them ominously.

“Run!” Felix warns and pulls Ace back on his feet.

Stumbling, they run out of the lodge with the killer chasing them, and Felix has never found it so hard to run in a straight line. With the killer easily catching up to their sluggish movements, he shoves Ace in the direction of an exit gate and leads her on a merry chase to the other side of the map.

And if the chase is more like five seconds and ends when Felix runs face first into a wall and knocks himself out, nobody will ever know.

When Felix eventually fades back to consciousness, he’s by the familiar glow of the campfire, and he’s sporting one hell of a hangover.

“Hey, are you alright? What happened?” Dwight is the first to notice his arrival, worriedly coming up beside him.

“And would you mind explaining to us why Ace stumbled into the exit puking his guts out?” Laurie demands, hands on her hips while she stands next to the man in question.

Ace doesn’t seem to be faring much better than how Felix feels, looking paler than usual and having donned his shades. He’s staring into the fire while aggressively chewing a piece of gum, probably to get the taste of bile and strawberries out of his mouth.

And he’s not even glancing in Felix’s direction.

“We might have had a little too much to drink,” Felix says, trying to ignore the pang of disappointment at being ignored. It seems like Ace either doesn’t remember or doesn’t _want_ to remember what happened between them.

Some of the others snicker at their misery and Laurie sets about to give him a stern lecture, but Felix mostly zones out to wallow in his misery.

The drinking was a mistake. Being alone with Ace was a mistake. And the kiss was _definitely_ a mistake.

Hours pass, and Felix makes some small talk with Kate inquiring about the margarita machines and spins a tale to Dwight about how he heroically distracted the killer so the rest of them could escape. All the while nursing his hangover and trying not to look at Ace like a pining teenager who just had his heart broken for the first time.

“Hey, puppy eyes,” a familiar voice eventually interrupts his moping, a warm hand patting him on the shoulder.

Felix stares, confused, as Ace takes a seat next to him, a crooked smile on his face and no longer looking like he’s five seconds away from being sick again.

“Hello,” Felix says hesitantly, because after his brain marinating in liquor he’s even more awkward than usual.

“Feeling lonely already?” Ace smirks, pushing his sunglasses up into his hair to give Felix a cheeky wink.

And then he puts a hand on Felix’s leg and leans _way_ into his personal bubble, and Felix can only blink and stare at the hand stupidly.

“Uh,” he says eloquently. What’s going on?

“Oh. _Shit_ ,” Ace suddenly curses and retracts his hand like burned, his eyes going wide in surprise. “You, uh… Probably had a little too much to drink, huh?” he laughs nervously.

“What?”

“I mean, it’s fine, really,” Ace rambles. “Nothing happened.”

Bullshit.

“I kissed you,” Felix deadpans.

“I—” Ace falters. “Uh, yeah. But it doesn’t have to mean anything!”

_Bullshit_.

“I touched your—” Felix continues, gaze dropping to Ace’s pants.

“ _Yeah_ , haha, you kinda did,” Ace interrupts, face now an adorable shade of red while several pairs of disbelieving eyes turn their way. “But it’s fine, I mean we can just forget this entire thing ever happened.”

Felix sure as hell can’t.

“Is that what you want to?” Felix asks, carefully leaning closer and giving Ace ample time to push him away.

“No, I mean, err,” Ace stammers, not prepared at being put on the spot. “What do _you_ want?”

“You,” Felix says without any hesitation, making Ace’s eyes momentarily widen in surprise. “I’ve wanted you for a long time, but you never showed any interest. Until when you were drunk.”

“Any—” Ace huffs. “You can’t tell me you only realized when I asked you to kiss me?”

That’s… exactly what happened, yes. Felix doesn’t say anything, but his mouth pressing into a line and his eyes avoiding Ace’s are enough for the gambler to pick up on.

“ _No_ ,” Ace says, giving him a disbelieving stare. “Oh, sweetheart. You never wondered why I always run to you to get patched up, even when I have a med-kit? Why I insist on doing the gens together? Why I call you pet names? Why I literally draped myself over you and called you cute? Why—”

“I get the idea,” Felix grumbles, feeling heat spreading up his neck. “I thought you were just being friendly.”

“And I sure as fuck didn’t think you were interested,” Ace grins. “Well, until last trial. And then I ruined it and almost puked all over you. I don’t blame you if you’re scarred for life.”

“Far from it,” Felix murmurs, eyes dropping to stare at Ace’s lips.

“Well, you probably want to avoid any of… _that_ , for a while, because I’ve chewed through a pack of gum but still feel pretty gross—" Ace blabbers.

“ _Ace_ ,” Felix interrupts.

“Yeah?” Ace asks, confused.

“Shut up,” Felix orders.

He watches the realization slowly dawn on Ace, a coy smirk spreading over his face and eyes twinkling with mischief, and then he’s leaning up and capturing Felix’s mouth in a much more elegant kiss than their last one.

A strong flavor of mint immediately floods Felix’s senses when he licks into the welcoming mouth, but he doesn’t care, relishing in the opportunity to get to do this again. It feels so different from when they were drunk, as he finds it much easier to focus on the gentle slide of lips and tongue and the small noises Ace makes, a stark contrast to the lewd moans from last time.

All too soon, there’s a loud clearing of a throat beside them and Ace pulls away from him, Felix turning to give the interrupter his dirtiest glare.

“Hi, excuse me, yeah, the rest of us still exist,” Nea says, not phased by his angry look. “I’m sorry, but what the hell happened last trial? How are you suddenly all… lovey-dovey?”

Felix looks at Ace’s grinning face and fond eyes, feeling his own lips quirk into a smile as he replies:

“You had to be there.”


	31. Day 31: Make me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> written for flufftober, rated G and no warnings.
> 
> since this is the last chapter, i'd like to thank everyone who has stopped by to give this ship a chance or maybe even read all of the chapters. this is the most ambitious writing project i've done and i'm both relieved and sad that it's over!

“ _Felix_.”

Felix slowly lifts his head at the sound of his name, pausing his conversation with Claudette to meet Ace's unimpressed eyes. He already knows that his lover isn't happy because he called him by name, and not a variation of the hundreds of obnoxious nicknames he usually uses.

“Hi Ace,” Claudette greets as kindly as ever.

“Sweetheart, this is a serious matter. You might want to step aside,” Ace tells her, and he tries to keep a straight face but Felix sees right through it, long since having learned all of Ace's subtle cues to know when he's faking it.

Claudette gasps and immediately offers a quick apology, hurrying to give them some space. Felix barely resists the urge to roll his eyes; he's pretty sure he's figured out what's got his boyfriend's panties in a twist, but leave it up to Ace to be a drama queen.

Luckily, two can play this game.

“Hey darling, how was your trial?” Felix says, offering a sweet smile to his lover while he pretends to be oblivious.

“Where is it?” Ace demands with a half-hearted glare.

“What are you talking about?” Felix frowns in mock ignorance.

“You _know_ what,” Ace huffs, crossing his arms. “My shirt. Where is it?”

Ah, as he suspected. It didn’t even take a full day for his boyfriend to notice the missing article of clothing, Felix having snagged it while Ace was busy in a trial.

“I don't mean to point out the obvious, but I think you're wearing one,” Felix says with a smile and tries not to laugh at the way Ace quietly fumes over his uncooperativeness.

“You're such a little shit,” Ace eventually huffs in resignation and flops down next to Felix.

“Sorry I couldn't help you,” Felix smiles victoriously and wraps an arm around Ace's shoulders.

Ace huffs in annoyance but leans into the touch, proving he's not nearly as upset as he seems. Ace is quiet for a while and Felix can practically hear the gears turning in his head, Claudette looking at them warily from the other side of camp.

Suddenly, like flicking a switch, the tension evaporates from Ace's body and he curls up around Felix like a cat, wrapping an arm around him and lifting the other hand up to rest on his chest.

“That's alright,” Ace practically purrs, looking up at Felix through half-lidded eyes and a pleasant smirk. “Guess that means I'll have to start wearing some of yours.”

“Be my guest,” Felix smiles back. “At least one of us has fashion sense.”

Ace's hand grips his shirt a little too tightly and Felix wonders if he went too far, but then Ace's lip twitches upward and he knows it's just part of the game.

“You know that every time you steal it, I'm just going to wear it more to spite you?” Ace offers casually.

“You'll have to find it first,” Felix smirks arrogantly.

“Give me a hint?” Ace pleads, nuzzling his nose against Felix's cheek to try to fool him into cooperating.

“It's somewhere in the woods,” Felix merely offers, and Ace grumbles in annoyance.

He's not exactly lying, but he's taken a few lessons from Ace and molded the truth in his favor, knowing the task of finding the shirt in the endless dark forest surrounding the campfire will seem impossible.

“Alright, that's it,” Ace huffs, pulling away just enough to give him a mix of a pout and a glare. “Where is it?”

“I told you,” Felix smirks.

“The exact location,” Ace demands. “Tell me."

“ _Make me_.”

When Ace grins in pure maniacal glee, Felix realizes that was probably the worst thing he could have asked his unpredictable boyfriend.

The air leaves his lungs as quick fingers jab into his sides, mercilessly tickling him. Felix laughs uncontrollably, trying to pry the hands away, but Ace isn't letting up.

“Where is it?” Ace demands, grinning way too smugly.

“God—stop, just stop!” Felix manages between his laughter.

“I will as soon as you tell me,” Ace pushes.

Felix is laughing so hard he's struggling to breathe, but still resists through sheer stubbornness.

And then Ace somehow starts tickling him even _harder_ and making him nearly howl with laughter, squirming in his seat.

“Okay, okay!” Felix relents, uselessly shoving at Ace's shoulder, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes from the ridiculous form of torture.

“I didn't hear an answer,” Ace sing-songs and keeps going.

“Toolbox!” Felix practically shouts, and Ace's fingers immediately pause. Felix sighs in relief and pants to collect his breath. “It's in one of your commodious toolboxes.”

“You hid it in my own stuff?" Ace quirks an amused eyebrow. “I would have found it eventually.”

“Like you ever actually use the items,” Felix snorts, having collected himself after the tickling incident. “You just like hoarding them like a magpie.”

“I'd tickle you again if that wasn't accurate,” Ace teases. “Come on, show me which one.”

Felix follows Ace into the treeline, to several trunks stacked next to and on top of each other, full of junk Ace has collected from the trials. It takes Felix some time to find the right toolbox, but soon he's pulling out the familiar purple fabric of Ace's tacky card print shirt.

“Aww, baby! Come here!” Ace coos, and Felix is a little surprised over the sudden burst of affection, but he goes in for the hug nonetheless—

And watches Ace snatch the shirt from his hand and pull it tight to his chest while Felix is left standing there with his arms spread like an idiot.

“There you are! Don't worry, I won't let the bad man keep us from each other!” Ace murmurs into the shirt.

Felix huffs and crosses his arms, waiting for his lover to finish his dumb joke.

“He's just jealous,” Ace smirks, giving Felix a cunning stare.

“In your dreams,” Felix snorts.

“Well, looks like I'll have to keep wearing it so you can't steal it,” Ace concludes and starts immediately stripping out of his current shirt, a light pink one Felix likes so much more than the trashy patterned monstrosity.

Felix acts fast.

“Hey,” he starts softly, carefully approaching his lover. “I’m sorry for hiding your shirt. I know how much you like it.”

“You’re fine,” Ace beams good-naturedly. “You know I don’t mind being pranked.”

“I still feel a little bad,” Felix says, bringing his hand up to rest on Ace’s now naked chest. “Let me make it up to you?” he murmurs, lightly running a finger down Ace’s torso.

Predictably, Ace’s gaze eagerly snaps up to meet his own, his task of switching shirts momentarily forgotten.

“I mean, it _was_ a pretty harrowing experience,” Ace says, smile spreading into a sly grin. “I might need to lie down for a bit.”

Felix returns the smirk and goes in for a kiss, which proves to be a more effective diversion than he would have thought. Ace seems to completely forget what he was doing, hands abandoning their task of undressing in favor of tangling in Felix’s hair while moaning quietly into the kiss.

And if Felix kicks the offending shirt into a bush while he guides Ace down on his back, his lover will be none the wiser.


End file.
